Drug News

DRUG ABUSE – USA
MO Rep. thinks drug dealers should be taxed on their products – KMBZ

In addition to the criminal charges that are brought against the defendant, they are also subject to the civil proceedings that department of revenue would pursue. Other states have similar laws, like North Carolina, which brings in about $11 million dollars a year from their drug tax. He’d like to see at least part of the revenue generated go toward drug rehab programs to cut down on repeat offenders.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Sen. Schumer wants restrictions on oxycodone as abused drug, but measure wouldn’t affect New York State – North Country Now

Approval of the recommendation would reclassify hydrocodone as a Schedule II drug at the federal level. The reclassification would place it on the same tier as a class of drugs that includes methadone, oxycodone, and oxymorphone.

COCAINE – USA
Drug Rehab Source Publishes Insightful Article On Cocaine Addiction Rehab Facilities – Melodika

People deal with stress and hardships in different ways, and sadly, there are those who end up becoming addicted to drugs.

ALCOHOL – AUSTRALIA
Early alcohol abuse signs – Yahoo!

A study of high school students aims to identify teenagers at risk of abusing alcohol and drugs, helping to identify what parents should look for.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Generic drug makers allowed to profit off of drug abuse – The Hill

According to the Obama-Biden White House, prescription drug abuse is “the nation’s fastest-growing drug problem.”

METHADONE – USA
Impact of methadone treatment center debated in Northeast – Philly.com

“Untreated addiction is what we should be concerned about, not treatment,” said Cini, who compared an addict’s need for methadone to a diabetic’s need for insulin.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Prescription drug abuse skyrocketing in teens – ABC Local

Police say teens are abusing many prescriptions drugs including painkillers like oxycodone and anti-anxiety pills like Klonopin, Xanax, and Valium. Police say teens often steal prescription drugs from medicine cabinets and then sell the pills.

ALCOHOL – USA
Randy Travis In Treatment For Alcohol Abuse – All Access Music Group

RANDY TRAVIS has entered rehab at an alcohol treatment center according to his attorney.

DRUG REHAB – USA
Octomom Nadya Suleman: ‘Rehab Has Changed My Life’ – Celeb Buzz

She’s back — and touting a dramatic change in her life. The woman known as Octomom, Nadya Suleman, ended a 28-day rehabilitation program in time to spend Thanksgiving with her family. “I am looking forward to my future and still feel I have a lot of work to do on myself, therefore I will be continuing my treatment.”

ALCOHOL – INDIA
‘Alcohol abuse behind rise in liver ailments among youth’ – Times of India

Liver ailments have become common among youngsters, say doctors, while attributing this condition to growing alcohol consumption among this generation.

DRUG REHAB – UK
‘I grew cannabis farm to fund son’s drug rehab’: Pensioner just wanted to help his ‘suffering’ – Mirror

A pensioner grew cannabis worth £12,000 to wean his son off drugs with a rehab course. Former oil rig worker Frank Jones, 74, admitted producing nearly 400 grammes of the drug which he told magistrates he believed was worth up to £3,000. After the hearing in Barnsley, he said: “You tell me any parent who sees their son suffering, who would not do just about anything to help them?

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – CANADA
Pregnant drug users need treatment, rehab for two – Windsor Star

Dawn recalled what it was like to come down off oxycodone: after the rush of energy, she would get “dope sick” – nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, anxiety. “That’s the worst feeling in the world.” She can’t imagine what being dope sick is like for an infant, Dawn said, cradling her rounding middle.

ALCOHOL – USA
UW-Stevens Point mulls banning alcohol from dorms – Janesville Gazette

One year after a student drowned in a river after a night of drinking, the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point is considering banning alcohol consumption in the dorms, even for students of legal drinking age.

MARIJUANA – USA
Thiago Silva Fails UFC on Fuel TV 6 Drug Test, Fighter Suspended – 411 Mania

UFC has released a statement regarding light heavyewight fighter Thiago Silva (14-3, MMA; 5-3, 2NC, UFC) who failed a drug test for marijuna following his fight with Stanislav Nedkov at UFC on Fuel TV 6: Franklin vs. Le. His win over Nedkov has also been overturned to a no contest.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Special courts aim to keep vets clean, out of jail – Greenville News

When a knee injury left him on disability and reliant on pain medication, Army veteran Clarence Johnson hit a wall. Out of his prescription drugs, the New York City native was arrested during a visit to South Carolina last year after buying narcotics on the street.

DRUG ADDICTION – UK
Doherty seeking treatment next year – KOKI Fox 23

Rocker Pete Doherty is planning a return to rehab in the New Year after cutting short a stint in a Thailand clinic over the summer, because he wasn’t mentally ready to “commit” to the program.

HEROIN – UK
More heroin for heroin addicts – is the Department of Health quite off its head? – Daily Mail

Free heroin dispensing on the NHS is getting closer. For seven years now the Department of Health has pumped our money into its ‘injectable opiate treatment trials’ to prove that it ‘works’. Now it plans to pour good money after bad.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Oxycodone: A good drug gone bad steals lives – Florida Today

Family torn apart by prescription drug abuse: Casey Keenan talks about prescription drug addiction from jail, while her mother suffers through the fact that all three of her children are hooked on the strong medications.

HEROIN – USA
Mesa police: Suspect said he stole for wife, heroin addiction – Tucson Citizen
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A man who was arrested on suspicion of stealing parts of an air conditioning unit told Mesa police Wednesday he did it to support his wife and his heroin addiction.

DRUG ABUSE – USA
Still Crazy: Some Dabble In Hard Drugs After 50, Researchers Find – WITN
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“There are probably more people using heroin sporadically then there are addicts.” Sporadic users having good jobs, nice homes, and families, but they are five times more likely to die earlier than those who don’t use drugs at all.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
Alcohol can be toxic to your heart – Salem News
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Most of us have read or heard that moderate drinking of alcohol can protect the heart from disease. It raises the level of good cholesterol, reduces plaque in the arteries, and helps prevent blood clots from forming. But do you know alcohol can be toxic to your heart? Over the longer term, heavy drinking can lead to high blood pressure, enlarged and weakened heart, congestive heart failure and stroke.

DRUG ABUSE – USA
Chris Herren delivers life lessons to Rutgers basketball – New Jersey Newsroom

It was standing room only as people lined the wall around the couple hundred seats that had been set up. Their eyes were locked on the once upon a time star. Their ears perked as they intently listened to his life story, hooked on every word like he once was on drugs.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – UK
Two glasses of wine a day ‘triples mouth cancer risk’ – The Guardian

Television adverts will aim to show that drinking just over the recommended daily limit for alcohol increases the risk of serious health problems. For example, regularly drinking two large glasses of wine or two strong pints of beer a day triples the risk of developing mouth cancer.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Florida turns tide on prescription drug abuse – Bradenton Herald
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Florida can celebrate several major milestones in the struggle to contain the state’s prescription drug abuse and pill mill epidemic.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
OxyContin abuse spreads from Appalachia across U.S. – Bellingham Herald
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Nearly every family in eastern Kentucky has been touched by prescription drug addiction and death. In the late 1990s, it was easier to find OxyContin – pure oxycodone with a time release – in Kentucky. The pills’ maker, Purdue Pharma, was selling it “hand over fist” to doctors in eastern Kentucky, rich with coal mine injuries and government health care cards.

DRUG ABUSE – USA
Bill Aims to Ban Common Cold Remedy Without a Prescription – KLAS-TV

Senator Leslie says it’s a solution to a growing drug abuse problem in Nevada. She claims it is a proven option and cited Mississippi, which took pseudoephedrine off the market six months ago. She says the state has seen a 90 percent drop in crime …

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
City, county, school officials ready drug drop-off – Republican & Herald‎

More than seven million Americans currently abuse prescription drugs, according to the 2009 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration’s National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Each day, approximately, 2500 teens use prescription drugs to get high for the first time.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – UK
Health bodies attack government alcohol abuse campaign – ShareCast ‎

A group of health organizations are refusing to sign up for the government’s campaign to tackle alcohol abuse as they feel it does not go far enough.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Doctors Lax in Monitoring Prescription Drug Users – About ‎

The same doctors who are prescribing powerful pain-killing pills to an estimated 48 million Americans are lax in monitoring those patients to determine if they are abusing the drugs, even those who are at high risk for opioid misuse.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – UK
3-year-old Diagnosed as Youngest Ever Alcoholic – Fox 31 KDVR.com ‎

“This is an extreme case and definitely one of the youngest cases of alcoholism we have heard of. However, it does raise the issue of the accessibility of alcohol and how normal it has become.”

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Bills target meth ingredients; ignore drug, alcohol addiction – The Daily News

Synthetic meth drugs such as methylone, MCPV, mephedrone, methedrone, flephedrone and 3-FMC, which are basically the same substance and are labeled not for human consumption, could be purchased legally until the state began targeting them last week.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Good for something: TSA scanner finds passenger’s meth – McClatchy Washington Bureau

Rhonda Renee Simmons is scheduled to appear in court Jan. 12 on a felony charge of possession of a controlled substance after police say she got caught with about a gram of methamphetamine in her pocket Tuesday night at the Boise Airport.

MARIJUANA – USA
Experts worry that medical-pot laws promote teen use – Denver Post ‎

The experts say they especially worry that increasingly permissive attitudes surrounding marijuana use might be leading to higher teenage drug use and …

HEROIN – USA
Man sentenced to 6 years in heroin overdose death – Chicago Tribune‎

A southwestern Illinois man has been ordered to spend six years in prison after he admitted his role in the heroin overdose death of another man.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Limits on over-the-counter decongestants could aid fight against meth – The Tennessean

Authorities’ reasoning is that pseudoephedrine, the key ingredient in the decongestants, is also a critical element for making methamphetamine.

METHAPHETAMINE – USA
Man told police he was high on meth when he stole car with baby inside – Pioneer Press‎

… with stealing a car in St. Paul last week with a baby inside told police he was “really high” on methamphetamine at the time, a criminal complaint said. …

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
State expands ID check for drugs – Boston Globe ‎

“The rising number of overdose deaths from prescription drug abuse is a very significant problem in Massachusetts.”

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Prescription drug abuse ‘epidemic,’ local doctor says – Beckley Register-Herald‎

Nearly half of all emergency room visits result from prescription drug abuse involving opioid-related medicine, or for a combination of illicit substances, …

ALCOHOL – USA
Students fight back on alcohol abuse – MiamiHerald.com‎

The poster is part of an innovative campaign called “Project Brain” to help change students’ perceptions about alcohol abuse. Having lost several friends …

Illegal Prescription Drug Distribution – USA
South Carolina doctor sentenced for illegal drug distribution – Thaindian News

COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA (BNO NEWS) – A doctor, of Hilton Head, South Carolina, was sentenced to 41 months of supervised release for conspiring to illegally distribute oxycodone, U.S. Attorney Kevin McDonald announced on Friday.

Drug Prevention – USA & Mexico
U.S. and Mexico issued a declaration of drug demand reduction cooperation – Thaindian News

WASHINGTON, D.C. (BNO NEWS) – The White House announced on Friday that government officials from the U.S. and Mexico issued a declaration of drug demand reduction cooperation.

Drug Rehabilitation – World News
Narconon network celebrates its 44th birthday – Behavioral Health Central

The Narconon drug rehabilitation program began on February 19th, 1966, based on a decision by Arizona State Prison inmate by the name of William Benitez. After reading a book by humanitarian L. Ron Hubbard, “The Fundamentals of Thought”, Benitez recognized there could be a whole new approach to curing himself and helping others get permanently off drugs – concentrate on your abilities, rather than your addiction. It sounds simple now, but it wasn’t to an inmate who had tried every other method to get off drugs way back in ’66.

Prescription Drug Abuse – USA
Superwoman syndrome credited to popping prescription pills – Thaindian News

New York, Feb 26 (ANI): A survey has revealed that most women, who are overwhelmed by jobs, kids and commitments, pop prescription pills to boost their energy, calm them down or for any other non medical reason.

Drunk Driving – USA
Police: Drunk man drove off with gas hose – UPI.com

SOUTH BEND, Ind., Feb. 25 (UPI) — Indiana police said they arrested an alleged drunk driver who drove away from a gas station with the nozzle and hose still attached to his vehicle.

Drug Related Incarceration – USA
Michael Douglas’ son Cameron to stay in jail until sentencing – Thaindian News

New York, Feb 26 (ANI): It has emerged that actor Michael Douglas’ drug-dealing son, Cameron, will remain in jail until he is sentenced in April.

Oxycodone – USA
‘Big Brother 9′ Winner Released To Drug Treatment – The Associated Press

‘Big Brother 9′ Winner Facing Drug Charges Released To Drug Treatment After Posting Bail

Alcohol – USA
ND Measure Would Raise Taxes On Wine, Beer, Liquor – The Associated Press

Raising North Dakota’s taxes on beer, wine and liquor would provide up to $2 million a year for programs that teach about the dangers of underage and binge drinking, says an advocate who wants a statewide vote on the issue.

Drug Money Smuggling – Mexico
U.S. drug cartel crackdown misses the money – The Associated Press

TIJUANA, Mexico – Every day, criminals shove proceeds from U.S. drug sales in their shoes, tape it to their torsos, stash it under dashboards — or just wire it electronically to Mexico. It all adds up to $25 billion a year.

Drugs – World News
3 Al-Qaida Suspects Charged In African Drug Case – The Associated Press

US Charges 3 Al-Qaida Suspects With African Drug Smuggling Into Europe

Underage Drinking – USA
Drunk 4-Year-Old Hayden Wright Steals Christmas Gifts, Drinks Beers, Has Very Merry Xmas – Crimesider

Hayden’s mother, 21-year-old April Wright, woke up at 1:45 a.m. and panicked when she realized he was missing. She found Hayden, drunk, outside the house drinking a 12-ounce can of beer Tuesday.

Alcohol Related Death – Germany
German Police: Missing US Man Fell Drunk In River – The Associated Press

German Police: Missing American Student Most Likely Fell Drunk Into Frankfurt River

Methadone – UK
The Big Question: Is methadone being over-prescribed as a treatment for drug addiction? – The Independent

A dispute has erupted over the treatment of drug addicts in prisons. According to the former government drugs tsar, Mike Trace, the Ministry of Justice and the Department of Health are battling to impose their differing approaches. The Ministry of Justice is said to favour pushing addicts towards abstinence, while the Department of Health is understood to back the “maintenance” prescribing of methadone to keep addicts stable.

Olympics – World News
IOC Withholds Jones’ 100-Meter Gold From Thanou – ABC News

The International Olympic Committee on Wednesday reallocated two individual medals stripped from Marion Jones for doping, but in an unprecedented move withheld her 100-meter prize from Greek sprinter Katerina Thanou because of her “disgraceful” behavior in evading drug tests at the 2004 Athens Olympics.

Oxycodone – Canada
Oxycodone Linked to Rise in Opioid-Related Deaths – HealthDayNews, Inc.

In the Canadian province of Ontario, painkiller abuse appears to have boosted the number of deaths from the drug known as oxycodone.

Narcotics – USA
Ky. Clinic Killing Highlights Region’s Drug Issues – The Associated Press

As the only doctor in a 30-mile swath of Appalachia, Dennis Sandlin was committed to using a tracking system designed to curb prescription drug abuse, an epidemic in the area he had served for nearly two decades.

Drugs – USA
Bodybuilders See Kidney Damage With Steroids – The New York Times

Many competitive bodybuilders take anabolic steroids to achieve their freakishly exaggerated physiques. That is no secret. But steroids can be only one part of an extreme regimen that can wreak havoc on the body. Human growth hormone, supplements, painkillers and diuretics can also be used to create the “shrink-wrapped” muscles so prized in the aesthetic.

Alcohol – USA
Drinkers Can Track BAC with New iPhone App – Join Together

A new iPhone application helps users keep track of their blood-alcohol content (BAC) and sends warning messages if data indicates the user is “buzzed” or legally intoxicated.

ALCOHOL – USA
Government: Growth in women who drink and drive – The Associated Press

The number of women arrested for drunken driving has jumped nearly 30 percent in the past decade, a dangerous trend that was all too evident when a wrong-way crash involving a woman in New York killed eight people.

ALCOHOL – USA
Crackdown on drunk driving begins Friday – The Capital Times

Hundreds of police officers and deputies will be out in force this weekend, cracking down on drunks who think it’s okay to get behind the wheel.

ALCOHOL – USA
Alcohol Rehab and Your Health – Trans World News

The abuse of alcohol, an addiction to alcohol can destroy your life on many different levels.  The number of people who have lost jobs, broken relationships and literally gone broke as a result of their alcohol addiction is huge.

PAINKILLER – USA
Even Pain Killer Addiction Requires Professional Treatment – Trans World News

The chemical nature of painkiller addiction makes it particularly tough to beat. Prescription painkillers like morphine, codeine, and oxycodone are linked to the same kind of drug dependency that underlies heroin abuse.

PAINKILLER – USA
Common painkiller more effective in fracture pain – Press TV

A simple over-the-counter painkiller is reported to be more effective in alleviating pain in children suffering a fracture than the more powerful combinations.

COCAINE – USA
U.S. Currency Contaminated with Cocaine – Join Together

The vast majority of U.S. paper money in circulation contains traces of cocaine, a new study finds. CNN reported Aug. 18 that researchers found that 90 percent of $1, $5, $10, $20 and $50 bills tested had detectable cocaine residue. Bills from major cities were more likely to test positive than those from smaller cities.

DRUGS – USA
More women held for driving while intoxicated, study finds – CNN News

Arrests for women driving under the influence jumped by nearly 30 percent during the decade ending in 2007, according to a study released Wednesday by the U.S. Transportation Department.

ADDICTION – USA
Narconon Graduate Handles Addiction Permanently – Trans World News

Feeling “helpless, undeserving and pretty hopeless “was what Paul experienced for more than 12 years while addicted to drugs. Paul says the more he used the more his life fell apart to the point that he was so self-destructive, his family finally stepped in to help him.

ALCOHOL – UK
Poor diet and alcohol abuse behind tripling of liver cancer – Wales Online

Poor diet and alcohol consumption, together with drug use are seen as the main factors behind the increase.

DRUGS – USA
Rx drugs leading cause of King County drug deaths – KOMO News

Deaths from prescription drugs have surpassed illegal drugs as the leading cause of drug-related deaths in King County, according to a new report released on Wednesday.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Prescription painkillers cause most King County drug deaths – Seattle Post Intelligencer

Abuse of prescription drugs is the leading cause of drug-related deaths in King County, a new report has found. In 2008, prescription opiates caused 153 of 256 drug-related deaths in King County.

PRESCRIPTION – USA
Dentists Seen as Source for Prescription Pain Pills – Join Together

Individuals addicted to prescription pain medications often turn to dentists as a source for drugs like codeine, Vicodin and OxyContin.

HEROIN – USA
Narconon Trois-Rivieres Cites ‘Hillbilly Heroin’ as Canadian Drug Addiction Crisis – PR Newswire

Legally prescribed by doctors and different medical practices, this narcotic is also regularly bought on the street and by methods of doctor-to-doctor shopping.

ALCOHOL – USA
Task force meets about campus alcohol problems – University Daily Kansas

The new University Alcohol Task Force is considering several proposals to change policies regarding alcohol on campus. The task force, which includes a variety of University staff, officials and students, held its first meeting Tuesday afternoon to discuss ways to curb alcohol use in light of recent alcohol-related student deaths.

ALCOHOL – USA
Survey reveals drug, alcohol use at L-S – Lincoln Journal

Drug and alcohol use and abuse is a problem, not only at Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School, but also at high schools across the region, the state and the nation.

ALCOHOL – UK
Thousands of children drinking seven pints a week – Telegraph

A third of children aged 11 to 15 who drink, consume more than 15 units in a week, the equivalent of seven pints of lager or one and a half bottles of average strength wine.

HEROIN – USA
Walpole chief: Heroin use on the rise – Daily News Transcript

Cheap heroin has flooded the streets of Walpole and the area in the past few months, causing some painkiller addicts to turn to the notorious drug – occasionally with lethal consequences.

MARIJUANA – USA
Chart of the Day: Marijuana/alcohol biggest problem for youth – Seattle Post Intelligencer

Most people under the age of 18 admitted to drug-assistance programs in King County last year were admitted for marijuana use, according to a report released Wednesday.