• Oklahoma court overturns $465 million opioid ruling against Johnson & Johnson

    Oklahoma court overturns $465 million opioid ruling against Johnson & Johnson

    Nov 09, 2021 06:20 PM EST

    State statistics show that from 2007 to 2017, more than 4,600 people in Oklahoma died from overdoses from opioids of all kinds, including prescription painkillers and illicit versions such as heroin and illegally made fentanyl. Nationally, opioids have been linked to more than 500,000 deaths since 2000. The ...

  • What young Americans think about vaccines and mandates

    What young Americans think about vaccines and mandates

    Nov 04, 2021 04:00 PM EST

    ... 18 report from the CDC, emergency department visits tied to mental health rose 31 percent among adolescents in 2020 compared to the previous year. Drug overdose deaths surged in 2020. But suicides declined, defying expectations, and some experts suggest the data do not yet portray such a dire picture for ...

  • First steps made in Congress to honor pop superstar Prince

    First steps made in Congress to honor pop superstar Prince

    Oct 25, 2021 07:57 PM EST

    ... a statement. Prince, whose hits include "Little Red Corvette," "Let's Go Crazy" and "When Doves Cry," died April 21, 2016, of an accidental fentanyl overdose at age 57 at his Paisley Park estate in Chanhassen, Minnesota. The resolution for Prince is led by Klobuchar and U.S. Rep. Ilhan ...

  • WATCH: Secretary Blinken, Mexico Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard give remarks

    WATCH: Secretary Blinken, Mexico Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard give remarks

    Oct 08, 2021 05:15 PM EST

    ... with the United Nations to launch a program to better manage shipping containers to limit the importation of chemical precursors for synthetic drugs like fentanyl. Mexico seized an estimated 1.3 tons of the synthetic opioid last year. That same year, the U.S. recorded 93,000 drug overdose deaths.

  • American pharmacies face trial in Ohio over role in opioid crisis

    American pharmacies face trial in Ohio over role in opioid crisis

    Oct 06, 2021 10:45 PM EST

    ... drug treatment, addiction treatment, health care programs can go on in communities all over the United States. And this is happening in a year when overdose deaths are expected to top 100,000 fatalities for the first time in American history. This is a devastating, ongoing crisis. There is not ...

  • Autopsy: Actor Michael K. Williams died of drug intoxication

    Autopsy: Actor Michael K. Williams died of drug intoxication

    Sep 25, 2021 07:13 PM EST

    ... 6 in Brooklyn. Williams, 54, was found dead by family members in his penthouse apartment. Police said at the time that they suspected a drug overdose. The city's Office of Chief Medical Examiner said it would not comment further. A message seeking comment was left with Williams' representative. Williams ...

  • Fentanyl is making its way into various drugs sold in the U.S. Here's how it gets there

    Fentanyl is making its way into various drugs sold in the U.S. Here's how it gets there

    Sep 15, 2021 10:35 PM EST

    ... with long stretches of fenceless border. Arizona State Senator Christine Marsh's 25-year-old son, Landon, was one of last year's 90,000 overdose deaths. Since fentanyl is so inexpensive, it has made its way into virtually every illicit drug. Fentanyl is now found in cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin ...

  • A secret look at a Mexican cartel's low-tech, multimillion-dollar fentanyl operation

    A secret look at a Mexican cartel's low-tech, multimillion-dollar fentanyl operation

    Sep 14, 2021 10:25 PM EST

    ... much stronger and deadlier. Since fentanyl is added into almost every drug in the illicit market, it helps explain the cost of over 90,000 overdose deaths last year in the United States. The cartel chemist says the spike in overdose deaths is the fault of local dealers in America ...

  • Efforts grow to end use of potentially harmful parasite drug touted to treat COVID-19

    Efforts grow to end use of potentially harmful parasite drug touted to treat COVID-19

    Sep 07, 2021 10:24 PM EST

    ... worms and other parasites in humans and animals. Federal health officials have seen a surge in prescriptions this summer, accompanied by worrying increases in reported overdoses. The drug was even given to inmates at a jail in northwest Arkansas for COVID-19, despite federal warnings against that use. On Wednesday ...

  • Actor Michael K. Williams, Omar on 'The Wire,' dead at 54

    Actor Michael K. Williams, Omar on 'The Wire,' dead at 54

    Sep 06, 2021 09:42 PM EST

    ... dead Monday afternoon in his Brooklyn penthouse apartment, New York City police said. He was 54. His death was being investigated as a possible drug overdose, the NYPD said. Little, a “stick-up boy” based on real figures from Baltimore, was probably the most beloved character among the devoted fans ...