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The Pills Spill in Syria
The Pills Spill in Syria
Dec 17, 2024 2:13 PM CST

The Pills Spill in Syria

Rebels uncover evidence of Assad regime's production, trafficking of Captagon

(Newser) - Syria's new rebel-led government has uncovered what experts say is proof of the former Assad regime's role in manufacturing and trafficking an addictive methamphetamine-like drug to fuel a crisis across the Middle East. For more than a decade, fenethylline, a synthetic stimulant known by the brand name Captagon,...

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...

Eli Lilly to Test Weight-Loss Drugs on Addiction

Company's CEO indicates they'll start testing Zepbound for other forms of treatment in 2025

(Newser) - Earlier this week, Eli Lilly announced it was teaming up with telehealth provider Ro to boost access to Zepbound, one of its weight-loss medications. Now, the pharmaceuticals giant is revealing more plans for its blockbuster drug, noting it wants to start testing Zepbound in 2025 as a treatment not only...

'Operation RU Pharm' Nabs 7 in Rutgers Bust

7 have been arrested in what authorities say was a social media-run drug ring at New Jersey university

(Newser) - A monthslong probe into drug activity at New Jersey's Rutgers University has resulted in seven arrests, including that of a former student. Per a release from the office of Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone, the undercover sting dubbed "Operation RU Pharm" unearthed "a closed and private social...

After Trump Tariffs Threat, Mexico Makes Huge Drug Bust

Mexico makes what officials say is biggest fentanyl seizure ever there

(Newser) - Mexican soldiers and marines seized over a ton of fentanyl pills in two raids in the north, with officials calling it the biggest catch of the synthetic opioid in the country's history. The raids came after a sharp drop in fentanyl seizures in Mexico earlier this year, and days...

On Popular Asthma Pill, 'Something That's Concerning'

FDA ties Singular (aka montelukast) to mental health issues; it's not necessarily cause-effect

(Newser) - When Merck debuted its Singulair asthma pill in the late '90s, an appealing alternative to asthma sufferers who relied on inhalers, the pharmaceuticals company compared it to a "sugar pill" in terms of side effects, calling any distribution of the drug to the brains of the millions of...

Denzel on Booze: 'I've Done a Lot of Damage to the Body'

Oscar-winning actor reveals to Esquire how wine became his 'thing,' until he quit a decade ago

(Newser) - Toward the start of his new stream-of-consciousness essay in Esquire that details "the moments that mattered and the experiences that made him," Oscar-winner Denzel Washington notes he "wasn't big" on alcohol as a youth. That changed down the road. The 69-year-old Training Day and Gladiator II...

Birth Control, Diabetes Meds in Canada Will Soon Be Free

Government passes law to boost access to drugs, though some provinces are balking

(Newser) - Our neighbor to the north is making it easier for citizens to acquire contraceptives and insulin. Canada's Parliament has just passed a law that will provide contraceptives to its citizens free of charge, as well as drugs for diabetes patients, covering the entire cost for those without insurance, as...

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...

CBP Probably Didn't Expect to Find This Much Bologna

Officers in Texas say woman coming from Mexico had 750 pounds' worth of meat in car, plus drugs

(Newser) - When officials inspected the bags of a woman crossing over from Mexico into Texas earlier this week, they noticed her suitcases seemed to be heavier than they should. They soon found out why: Customs and Border Protection says that when they opened up the bags in the GMC Yukon at...

Among Perry's Last Words: 'Shoot Me Up'

Actor's illegal ketamine injections quickly went from bad to worse: court documents

(Newser) - Matthew Perry had repeatedly fallen unconscious or otherwise been unable to speak or move after injecting large amounts of ketamine before his last, fatal dose, court documents reveal. The Friends actor was undergoing medically supervised ketamine infusion therapy for depression and anxiety but was also injecting illegal doses up to...

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...

14 Bodies Found Aboard Boat Drifting Off Dominican Republic
Mysterious Drifting Boat
Reveals 14 Skeletons
in case you missed it
Aug 11, 2024 12:50 PM CDT

Mysterious Drifting Boat Reveals 14 Skeletons

Dominican Republic authorities say bodies, packages with apparent drugs were found on board

(Newser) - Authorities this week discovered an abandoned boat floating off the Dominican Republic's northern coast, with a most gruesome discovery on board: 14 sets of mostly decomposed human remains, as well as a dozen packages of what appears to be illegal drugs. The AP reports that the vessel was spotted...

Hurricane Debby Dumps $1M in Cocaine on Florida Beach
Hurricane Debby Apparently
Brought a Lot of Cocaine
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Aug 10, 2024 12:00 PM CDT

Hurricane Debby Apparently Brought a Lot of Cocaine

Storm dumps packages worth $1M on beaches in the Florida Keys

(Newser) - Hurricane Debby is wreaking havoc in the South this week, with Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina its biggest targets, but the storm system brought a little something extra to the Sunshine State, per the AP : 70 pounds of cocaine, worth about $1 million, that washed up in the Florida Keys,...

After US Pressure, China Yields on Fentanyl Chemicals

Beijing agrees to crack down on drug's precursors starting Sept. 1

(Newser) - China, one of the largest sources of chemicals used to produce fentanyl, will impose new restrictions on the substances, in a move signaling the Biden administration's pressure campaign has paid off. The administration has for years been pushing Beijing to impose stricter oversight over the production and sale of...

This Drug 'Could Change the Trajectory' of HIV Epidemic

Gilead's Sunlenca prevents infections in girls and young women who get a twice-yearly shot

(Newser) - A twice-yearly shot was 100% effective in preventing HIV infections in young women and teen girls, according to the results of what some are calling a "breakthrough" phase 3 trial. The randomized, double-blind trial by drugmaker Gilead Sciences involved more than 5,000 young women and girls in South...

As It Turns Out, Cocaine Sharks Are Real
Brazil Sharks Test
Positive for Cocaine
NEW STUDY
Jul 23, 2024 12:00 PM CDT

Brazil Sharks Test Positive for Cocaine

Presence of the drug in wild sharks is verified for the first time

(Newser) - Cocaine sharks really do exist, researchers have confirmed, a year after scientists probed the possibility in the "Shark Week" documentary Cocaine Sharks and filmmakers terrified audiences with a horror film of almost the same name . A group of Brazilian sharpnose sharks taken from the ocean near Rio de Janeiro...

Report: Texas Bought Its Execution Drug From 'Pill Mill'

NPR probe finds state scooped up pentobarbital made by San Antonio compound pharmacy

(Newser) - When Texas tried in the past to get its hands on pentobarbital, a drug used in lethal injections there to mixed success, pharmaceutical companies said they wanted no part of the execution circuit. The state apparently found another conduit. After a review of federal DEA records and files from the...

On Alzheimer's, an Advance 'We've All Been Waiting For'

Eli Lilly's donanemab, sold as Kisunla, gets the FDA green light to help slow disease progression

(Newser) - Last summer, the Food and Drug Administration gave the thumbs-up to Leqembi, the first drug shown to slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease. Now, almost a year to the day after that move, the government agency has greenlit a second drug: Eli Lilly's donanemab, sold under the brand...

Supreme Court Tosses Controversial Opioid Settlement

5-4 ruling blocks nationwide deal with Purdue Pharma over opioid epidemic

(Newser) - The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a nationwide settlement with OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma that would have shielded members of the Sackler family who own the company from civil lawsuits over the toll of opioids but also would have provided billions of dollars to combat the opioid epidemic. After deliberating...

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