overdose

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McKinsey 'Deeply Sorry' for Helping Drugmaker Push Oxy

Consulting firm to pay $650M in settlement after assisting with Purdue Pharma's opioids push

(Newser) - The McKinsey & Company consulting firm has agreed to pay $650 million to settle a federal investigation into its work to help opioids manufacturer Purdue Pharma boost the sales of the highly addictive drug OxyContin, per court papers filed in Virginia on Friday. The AP reports that, as part of...

Big Drop in OD Deaths: 'This Has Not Happened by Accident'

Preliminary data from CDC shows 10% decrease in overdose deaths in 12-month span ending in April

(Newser) - Partly due to fentanyl rampaging through the narcotics pipeline, the United States has seen a depressingly high death count from drug overdoses in recent years. Now, however, signs of improvement: According to preliminary data from the states released in August by the CDC , there was a 10% drop in that...

Doctors Charged in Perry's Death Mocked Him in Texts

Actor's personal assistant and an alleged dealer known as the 'Ketamine Queen' also charged

(Newser) - Authorities have charged five people in last year's fatal overdose of Matthew Perry —including his personal assistant and two doctors, reports the Washington Post . Perry died of a ketamine overdose last year at the age of 54, and authorities have been investigating the source of the drug. The...

It's a Rare Something to Celebrate Amid Fentanyl Crisis

Overdose deaths decline for first time since 2018

(Newser) - There's a glimmer of hope in the ongoing drug crisis powered by fentanyl. Overdose deaths declined in 2023 for the first time in five years, though the drop was only slight, according to CDC estimates. There were 107,500 deaths, down 3% from 111,029 in 2022, preliminary data...

More Drug ODs Now Come From Smoking, Not Injecting
More Overdoses Now Come
From Smoking, Not Injecting
new study
Feb 16, 2024 11:53 AM CST

More Overdoses Now Come From Smoking, Not Injecting

CDC flags the drug stat, which is linked to the rise of fentanyl use

(Newser) - A new CDC report flags a notable stat related to the rising use of fentanyl: For the first time, more fatal overdoses come from smoking drugs than injecting them.
  • From early 2020 to late 2022, smoking overdose deaths surged 74% while injection overdose deaths fell 29%, reports the AP .
  • Overall,
...

Dana Carvey on Grief: 'Make Sure That You Keep Moving'

Comedian returns to his podcast 2 months after son's death, talks about riding the 'pain train'

(Newser) - It's been two months since Dex Carvey, the 32-year-old son of Dana Carvey and his wife, Paula Zwagerman, lost his life in an accidental drug overdose. Now, the former Saturday Night Live comedian is opening up about his grief, shedding some light on the "private journey" he and...

More Pregnant, Postpartum Women Dying of Overdoses
More Pregnant, Postpartum
Women Dying of Overdoses
new study
Nov 24, 2023 10:10 AM CST

More Pregnant, Postpartum Women Dying of Overdoses

Study finds ratio jumped between 2018 and 2021

(Newser) - A January study found mortality rates for pregnant women and new mothers worsened during the pandemic, and a new study zeroes in on one such cause: overdoses. Researchers with the National Institute on Drug Abuse reviewed data on more than 17,000 deaths over the 2018 to 2021 period; STAT...

Angus Cloud's Mom: His Death Was Not Intentional

'Euphoria' star's mom addresses the speculation

(Newser) - Angus Cloud's mom is speaking out after rampant speculation as to how the Euphoria star died. "Social media posts have suggested his death was intentional," the actor's mom posted on Facebook . "I want you to know that is not the case." Lisa Cloud says...

US Army Sees Record Number of Fatal ODs From This Drug

Fentanyl is hitting all military branches, but none as hard as the Army, and loved ones want answers

(Newser) - Earlier this year, Congress received some sobering data from the Department of Defense showing that fentanyl was involved in 88% of the 2021 deaths of US troops who'd died of drug overdoses—up from just 36% five years earlier. "Our military is not immune to the opioid epidemic,...

US to Study Controversial Idea for Drug Users

$5M will go toward looking at 2 'safe injection sites' in New York and Rhode Island

(Newser) - For the first time, the US government will pay for a large study measuring whether overdoses can be prevented by so-called safe injection sites, places where people can use heroin and other illegal drugs and be revived if they take too much. As the AP reports, the grant provides more...

Narcan Could Soon Be Available Over the Counter

FDA panels support change making overdose-reversing drug much more widely available

(Newser) - Two panels of Food and Drug Administration advisers have unanimously recommended that Narcan be made available over the counter, a move that could help reduce deaths in the ongoing opioid epidemic. The overdose-reducing nasal spray, known generically as naloxone, is already widely used by first responders and outreach workers. But...

Kids Got Their Hands On Lots of Edibles During Pandemic

Study finds 1,375% spike in reports to poison centers involving children under 6 from 2017 to '21

(Newser) - More than 40% of human poison exposure calls to US poison centers in 2020 were about children who'd accidentally been exposed to cannabis, according to a new study, which shows an alarming rise in accidental ingestion of edibles in particular. The number of children under 6 who accidentally ate...

Mom of Girl, 15, Who Fatally Overdosed at School Sues District

2 teen boys were arrested in the case earlier this year

(Newser) - The mother of a 15-year-old girl who died of a suspected fentanyl overdose at her Hollywood high school in September is suing the Los Angeles school district of which the school is a part. Elena Perez alleges that officials knew about "rampant drug sales" at Helen Bernstein High School...

Dad: My Baby ODed on Fentanyl at Public Park

10-month-old now OK; San Francisco city officials, media trying to confirm exactly what happened

(Newser) - A nanny's trip this week to a Bay Area public park with 10-month-old twins in her care turned terrifying, with the family and local authorities sharing that one of the boys was exposed to fentanyl during their visit. Wendy Marroqui tells NBC Bay Area that she took Senna and...

Former LA Angels Employee Gets 22 Years in Pitcher's Death

Judge added 2 years because of remarks Eric Kay made about Tyler Skaggs

(Newser) - Update: Former Los Angeles Angels staff member Eric Kay has been sentenced to 22 years in federal prison for giving pitcher Tyler Skaggs the drugs that killed him. District Judge Terry Means said he was sentencing Eric Kay, the team's former communications director, to two years over the statutory...

Scott Adams Offers Eyebrow- Raising Take on Troubled Young Men

'Dilbert' creator sees only 2 options available: 'murder your own son or watch him die'

(Newser) - Scott Adams has had controversial takes on gun violence before, but his latest one, on the Highland Park mass shooting , is spurring backlash from those speaking on mental health illness and addiction. The 65-year-old creator of the Dilbert cartoon strip posted an eyebrow-raising series of tweets on Wednesday that discussed...

Rise in Sleep Aid Poisoning of Children Worries Experts
Research Finds More Children
Being Poisoned by Melatonin
in case you missed it
Jun 5, 2022 9:00 AM CDT

Research Finds More Children Being Poisoned by Melatonin

Rate has jumped during the pandemic

(Newser) - Researchers are drawing attention to a rise in poisonings in children involving the sleep aid melatonin—including a big jump during the pandemic. Last year, US poison control centers received more than 52,000 calls about children consuming worrisome amounts of the dietary supplement, a six-fold increase from about a...

Canada Takes Bold Step to 'Remove the Shame' on Drugs

Small amounts of 'hard' drugs to be temporarily decriminalized in British Columbia to fight ODs

(Newser) - If you're busted in British Columbia with a small amount of hard drugs, you could soon see some grace, thanks to an innovative new program designed to deal with the OD crisis. The BBC reports that, starting at the end of January, drugs like cocaine, methamphetamine, MDMA (ecstasy), and...

CDC Reveals 'Truly Staggering' Stat on Drug Overdoses

More than 107K Americans suffered fatal ODs last year

(Newser) - More than 107,000 Americans died of drug overdoses last year, setting another tragic record in the nation's escalating overdose epidemic, the CDC estimated Wednesday. The provisional 2021 total translates to roughly one US overdose death every five minutes. It marked a 15% increase from the previous record, set...

Another Plea Deal Struck in Mac Miller's Fentanyl Death
First Sentence in
Mac Miller's Death
Handed Down
UPDATED
Apr 19, 2022 12:46 AM CDT

First Sentence in Mac Miller's Death Handed Down

Ryan Michael Reavis gets nearly 11 years

(Newser) - Update: Ryan Reavis, one of the drug dealers involved in rapper Mac Miller's fentanyl death, was sentenced Monday to 10 years and 11 months behind bars, TMZ reports. Prosecutors wanted 12 and a half years, while Reavis, who insisted in court that he was just the middle man and...

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