Martha Bebinger
[Copyright 2024 NPR]
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The overdose antidote naloxone could soon be available in more public places. The Veterans Administration is adding it to its automated defibrillator cabinets. Other institutions are following suit. -
Massachusetts planned to exclude expensive drugs that weren't proven to work better than existing alternatives from its Medicaid plan. Medicaid drug spending had doubled in five years. -
Families are starting to adopt an approach that stresses compassion instead of harsh consequences for loved ones with addiction. Their goal? Keep them alive long enough to recover. -
The Trump administration says its plan to overhaul the way Medicare pays doctors will save physicians time and paperwork. But critics worry the changes will hurt patients' care and doctors' income. -
An overdose is a wake-up call for many people with addiction. So why aren't patients being offered medications that could keep them from looking for the next dangerous hit of drugs? -
Opioid addiction is often portrayed as a white problem, but overdose rates are now rising faster among Latinos and blacks. Cultural and linguistic barriers may put Latinos at greater risk. -
The powerful opioid fentanyl is showing up in batches of cocaine, threatening a new wave of opioid overdoses. Some doctors, drug users and law enforcement wonder if the contamination is deliberate. -
Opioid overdoses and related deaths are still climbing, according to U.S. statistics. Teasing out which overdoses are intentional can be hard, but is important for treatment, doctors say. -
Many surgeons prescribe strong pain medicine without knowing how much their patients actually need. A group of doctors says hospitals should be accountable for patients' long-term opioid use. -
Such attacks among women and some men with an opioid addiction often go unreported because the victims fear retaliation from drug dealers or charges from police.
