Drug News

SUBSTANCE ABUSE – USA
Herbal incense, ‘bath salts’ rip apart user’s life – Shelbyville Times-Gazette

“I’m not an addict,” Brenda Fogus thought as she consumed herbal incense. “It’s not narcotics. I’m not an addict,” Brenda told the staff at a Georgia treatment center, where she’d been taken after a binge on bath salts which led to a long drive to a city where she had no connections. “I’m clean. I’m not using narcotics.” Brenda was lying. To the world — and herself.

DRUG REHAB – USA
Back2Basics Drug Rehab Facility Now Includes Higher Education Classes in Program – SF Gate

Through the recent incorporation of higher education courses at Northern Arizona University, the Back2Basics long-term sober living program pushes addicts to come out of addiction and go back into the classroom.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – CANADA
The long wait for rehab: Parents watch addicted children suffer, and feel compelled to pay for drugs – Ottawa Citizen

Oxy, we know, can wreck your teenager. It can also ruin your resolve as a parent, leave you with only bad choices, introduce you to shame, failure. Armchair psychologists like to toss around terms like “enabling” and “tough love” as verdicts on the trials of parents coping with addiction in their families. But one thing complicates the equation. Being witness to human suffering.

DRUG REHAB – USA
Christie: Give nonviolent criminal addicts treatment – Philly.com

Calling addiction a treatable disease, Gov. Christie said Thursday that he would mandate treatment for nonviolent criminals with drug dependence, a program that would take at least a year to start. In the meantime, Christie would offer yearlong drug treatment to 1,000 to 1,500 low-level offenders now in prison.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
Proposal Attempts Alcohol Abuse Prevention – WOWT.com
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A proposed change in a Lincoln ordinance is aimed at curbing liquor violations before they occur. The proposal would require bartenders and others who serve alcohol to take special training classes. The Lincoln Journal Star reports an estimated 7,000 servers or sellers of alcohol would have to take the hour-long class that is tentatively priced at $20. Topics include the signs of intoxication and how to avoid serving underage customers.

DRUG REHAB – USA
Addiction Treatment Advocates Call for More Alcohol Tax Money for Programs – KTVA.Com

Calling substance abuse an epidemic in Alaska, advocates of treatment and prevention say the key to getting more people help is by increasing the amount of dollars used from the alcohol beverage tax – money they say could save lives. The numbers are quite frankly embarrassing and heartbreaking, with substance abuse playing a role in nine of Alaska’s top ten causes of death.

DRUG REHAB – WORLDWIDE
Can Exercise Help Treat Addiction? – Huffington Post

When an individual is trying to recover from addiction, the body and mind miss whatever was producing endorphins in the brain, responsible for that “high” feeling. Add in everyday stress, which can heighten cravings, and the recovery process can be a knockdown, drag-out fight.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
Drinking Games Causing Legal, School Problems for Light, Moderate Drinkers – College Times
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A new study suggests that drinking games – and not the actual act of consuming a moderate amount of alcohol – is getting light and moderate drinkers into trouble with the law and school.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
How N.J. plans to put a lid on pain pills – NJ.com

All it took was a single pill. A friend encouraged her to try it, then a doctor prescribed it, no questions asked. A single pill of the painkiller OxyContin and Brenna-Ann Haase was hooked, so much so that she stole cash, jewelry, DVDs, anything she could use to feed her addiction.

DRUG ABUSE – Guam
Dancers say no to drugs: Crew helps teenagers stay sober – Guam PDN

A recovering alcoholic and former Department of Youth Affairs corrections officer, is founder and leader of the Just Say No Dance Crew, a growing group of scrappy teenagers popping and locking their way off the streets and away from drugs and alcohol.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Prescription drug abuse crisis is detailed – Buffalo News

Prescription drugs continuing to result in crime, overdoses and death. State Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman’s 42-page report documents the year-to-year increase in the number of hydrocodone and oxycodone prescriptions being written in New York State, as well as prescription drug-related addiction and death.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
6 Rehab Movies That Will Leave You Fearing Drugs – Screen Junkies

Rehab movies are designed to warn people about the dangers of substance abuse. The highs and lows of the characters consuming these substances help to educate and enlighten audiences. The stories can ultimately be uplifting, but in order to truly inform people, filmmakers often end up depicting drug abuse as a horrible and arduous disease. They litter their films with many gritty and disgusting scenes to fully show off the horrors of abuse. Keeping with that theme, these six rehab movies will leave people fearing drugs and contemplating a life of abstinence.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
Wisconsin has high rate of alcohol use by adults, teens – Herald Times Reporter
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Wisconsin has the highest rates of any state in the nation for adult use of alcohol, adult heavy use of alcohol and adult binge drinking.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Op-Ed: Mobile meth labs and meth addiction out of control in U.S. – Digital Journal
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“There is no drug better suited to making horrible decisions about your children than methamphetamine, which keeps you awake for days and then when you crash it’s like the sleep of a coma, during which you have no idea what’s happening with those kids.”

ALCOHOL ABUSE – GLOBAL
Higher alcohol prices may curb drinking: study – Reuters

Findings published in the journal Addiction showed that each 10 percent price hike in the minimum price of beer, liquor and alcoholic beverages led people to drink 3.4 percent less alcohol overall, with consumption of specific types of alcohol falling even more.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Opioid Use a Growing Epidemic in Workers’ Comp – Property Casualty 360

Opioids are intended for short-term use or end-of-life cancer pain. They are meant to be prescribed after major surgeries or major trauma. “Short term” is meant to signify a span of a few days or weeks—not years, as the current trend indicates.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Drug-testing proposal for welfare recipients debated – New Philadelphia Times Reporter

A proposal to require welfare recipients to pass a drug test — an idea being pushed by GOP lawmakers in Ohio and other states — is being questioned as an inefficient use of taxpayer dollars.

DRUG REHAB – USA
Chris Rene says he’d use ‘The X Factor’ prize money to create a rehab center – OnTheRedCarpet.com

Chris Rene says if he wins “The X Factor” he’ll take the $5 million prize money and use it to create a rehab center for individuals like himself.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Long struggles with drugs ended in death – StarNewsOnline.com

Prescription drug abusers do not fit neatly into a profile or a stereotype, but range from the teenager stealing bottles from the medicine cabinet to the senior chewing pills to quell chronic pain.

DRUG REHAB – USA
Drug Tampering Cases Show Gaps in Nurse Regulation in Kansas – Insurance Journal

A nurse with a prior felony conviction for forging prescriptions dilutes morphine solutions for five Halstead, Kan., nursing home patients. Another nurse convicted of stealing drugs from patients at an Emporia home gets another job in Topeka, where she adds tap water to a painkiller prescribed for a 105-year-old patient. Still another nurse …

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
Adolescent drinking may be as important a risk factor for criminal activity as illicit drug use – Eureka Alert

Alcohol use has often been linked to criminal activity on the part of both perpetrators as well as victims. While this relationship has been well documented among adults, fewer studies have explored this relationship among adolescents. A new study has found a strong relationship between drinking during adolescence and the commission of crimes, and criminal victimization, for both genders.

DRUG REHAB – USA
A young woman struggles with oxy addiction and recovery – Tampabay.com

When her mom came to pick her up for drug court that morning, Stacy Nicholson was still high. She staggered to the door, fumbled with the bungee cord that kept it closed, blinked back the sunlight.

ECSTASY – SCOTLAND
Warning over ecstasy pills that raise overdose risk – BBC News

Police have issued a warning about an ingredient in some ecstasy tablets which could lead to overdosing. partygoers should be aware of the potentially fatal risks. Tablets which look like ecstasy have been found to contain a drug called PMMA. The substance has been blamed for several deaths across Europe.

DRUG REHAB – USA
Narconon East US Director Has Holiday Tips For Intervention And Drug Rehab Alternatives – PR Web

Narconon East US Executive Director, Yvonne Rodgers, has lifesaving holiday tips of an unusual nature. Her tips are for the loved ones and parents of those struggling with substance abuse and cover drug abuse intervention and drug rehab as an alternative to jail.

DRUG REHAB – USA
Treatment, Not Jail, For Low Level Drug Crimes – NPR

A pilot program in Seattle, Wash., and surrounding King County allows some low-level drug offenders to go to rehabilitation programs instead of prison. Guest host Tony Cox speaks with King County’s sheriff, a public defender and a member of the Seattle police department about the bi-partisan plan.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
Black and Asian Teens Have Lowest Rates of Drug and Alcohol Use – Business Week

‎Black and Asian teenagers in the US are less likely to use alcohol or drugs than adolescents of other races, a study found.

DRUG ADDICTION – INDIA
Average age of drug addicts in Bangalore: 13 years! – NDTV

Bangalore: Drug rehabilitation centres in the city have recorded some shocking changes with regard to the number of narcotic users this year.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Alabama legislators eye prescriptions to thwart meth making – AL.COM

The drug is highly addictive, and long-term users can suffer from rotting teeth sometimes called “meth mouth,” mood disturbances, violent behavior, hallucinations and extreme weight loss.
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DRUG REHAB – USA
Narconon East US Director Urges Alcohol and Drug Rehab Admission Before the Holidays – PR WEB

Narconon East US, Executive Director urges alcohol and drug users to enroll in rehab centers before the Holidays when addiction intensifies with more pressure to drink and party.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA/CANADA
Women and Alcohol: Solutions – Toronto Star
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“The new reality is that binge drinking has been increasing, especially among young adults, in modern high-economy countries — and women are largely responsible for this trend. Alcohol use contributes causally to 7 per cent of all cancers, 4 per cent of coronary disease, 23 per cent of all injuries and 26 per cent of neuropsychiatric conditions in North America.

COCAINE ADDICTION – USA
From med school to crack addict, an ex-con works his way back to sobriety

Moore, 54, is an ex-con who has spent much of his adult life in and out of prison, paying society’s price for his cocaine addiction. He missed his mother’s funeral and nearly lost his brothers and sister. Still, while Moore’s is a cautionary tale, it is also one that — so far — is shaping up to have a happy ending. And his life may yet turn into something to be celebrated.

ECSTASY – USA
Clinic a supermarket for Oxycontin and ecstasy – Seattle Post
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“It’s a supermarket for Oxycontin and ecstasy,” he said. “And there’s a lot of money changing hands.”

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Arrests mark U.S. prescription drug abuse crackdown – Reuters

U.S. authorities arrested 22 people in Florida on Friday, including pharmacists and doctors, in a crackdown against prescription drug abuse that officials say is the nation’s fastest growing drug problem.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Tennessee drug task force waging lonely war on Rx diversion – KnoxNews
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Tennessee created a statewide task force on prescription-drug abuse four years ago and never set aside a penny to fund it. The state Drug Diversion Task Force subsists on volunteer efforts in its battle against Tennessee’s most widespread drug problem. “Everybody thinks we get money,” said Elizabeth Sherrod, the task force coordinator. “We get nothing. Speakers at our meetings travel at their own expense.”

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Expert on drug abuse tells local conference that fatal overdoses are rising – Herald
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For the first time in 2010, the leading cause of accidental death in the country was from accidental fatal overdose with prescription opiates as the primary drug involved.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Prescription drug abuse video contest launched for Ky. high school students – WPSD Local 6

Kentucky high school students are being asked to enter a video contest as part of efforts to educate the public about the dangers of prescription drug addiction.

ALCOHOL/DRUG ABUSE – USA
Talk to children about drugs, alcohol – Auburn Citizen
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Did you know that the average American has his or her first drink around age 14? According to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, almost 80 percent of high school students have tried alcohol. In an average month, about 9 million Americans teens drink alcohol. A study done recently by the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center states that underage alcohol use happens between fifth and sixth grade!

ALCOHOL ABUSE – UGANDA
Excessive Alcohol Consumption is a key to chronic poverty in Uganda – New Vision
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Excessive Alcohol Consumption is a key ‘’driver and maintainer’’ of chronic poverty in Uganda. The reason why excessive consumption of alcohol has become a new frontier for chronic poverty in Uganda is that, the discussion on excessive alcohol consumption in the country has for long been in the back –seat of what is considered to be ‘’ personal choices.’’ This mentality has hindered attempts to bring the issue into the public domain and the frontline of public policy.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Baby seller case: Not first time a child taken from Fousek because of meth exposure – Mercury News

A jury Tuesday convicted a Salinas man of endangering the baby girl he exposed to methamphetamine and offered to sell in a Walmart parking lot last year. What the jury did not know, and what Judge Pamela Butler will take into consideration when sentencing Patrick Fousek, is that it’s not the first time one of his children has been taken from him because of methamphetamine exposure.

PARTY DRUGS – UK
Party drug meow meow kills one young Briton a week – Daily Mail

Banned last year, mephedrone is blamed for causing a further 19 users to commit suicide. Children are also at risk from the increasing availability of so-called ‘legal highs’, a Home Office report found

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
Parents’ View of Teen Drug Use: Your Kid, Not Mine – Web MD

One in 10 parents surveyed believed their own teenage child had used alcohol during the previous year. And just one in 20 believed their teen had smoked marijuana.
Teens themselves reported a much higher rate of substance use in a separate poll released late last year. About half of 10th-graders said they had used alcohol over the previous 12 months; about one in 4 (28%) reported marijuana use.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Drug deaths now outnumber traffic fatalities in U.S., data show – LA Times

Fueling the surge are prescription pain and anxiety drugs that are potent, highly addictive and especially dangerous when combined with one another or with other drugs or alcohol.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Oxycodone bust tied to Westchester airport highlights US explosion – The Journal News

Ten years ago, if a federal Drug Enforcement Administration agent were told he would be chasing traffickers in illicit prescription drugs like pain relievers and sedatives, he likely would have laughed. Not anymore. “Now, those same guys that would have laughed at it, they’re chasing this stuff all the time,”

HEROIN – USA
Dope-sick: Youths migrate to heroin as deaths spike – Belleville News Democrat

The suburban youth drug culture is graduating. Marijuana, alcohol and the occasional acid trip are being replaced by powerful painkillers and the drug blamed for more local overdose deaths: heroin. “It’s in your backyard. You just don’t know it.”

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Abuse of Xanax Leads a Clinic to Halt Supply – New York Times

Gayle Mink, a nurse practitioner at a community mental health center here, had tired of the constant stream of patients seeking Xanax. Because of the clamor for the drug, and concern over the striking number of overdoses involving Xanax here and across the country, Seven Counties doctors stopped writing new prescriptions for Xanax and its generic version, alprazolam, in April and plan to wean patients off it completely by year’s end.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Synthetic drugs bring new rush hour to downtown Duluth – Duluth News Tribune

On many mornings, it looks like it’s the hottest business in downtown Duluth. Dozens of customers line up in front of the Last Place on Earth head shop on Superior Street to buy designer drugs.

ALCOHOL – USA
12 Health Risks of Chronic Heavy Drinking – Web MD

It’s no secret that alcohol consumption can cause major health problems, including cirrhosis of the liver and injuries sustained in automobile accidents. But if you think liver disease and car crashes are the only health risks posed by drinking, think again: Researchers have linked alcohol consumption to more than 60 diseases.

METHAMPHETAMINE – NEW ZEALAND
Addiction Brought Woman’s Downfall – Wanganui Chronicle

A Wanganui woman’s downfall from a good upbringing and acclaim as a top student to being jailed on drugs charges was “a classic methamphetamine story”.

PRESCRIPTION DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Officials warn of prescription drugs in schools – WVLT

Maryville City school officials worry more kids are abusing prescription pills like Oxycontin, Percocet and Adderall.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
No shame, only hope, in fighting your child’s drug addiction – Minneapolis Star Tribune

Really, really good kids become addicted to drugs, and really, really good kids lie, cheat and steal to protect that addiction. The change doesn’t happen overnight.

DRUG ADDICTION – UK
Lib Dems to vote to decriminalise all drug use – The Independent

The proposed reform is based on legislation in Portugal, where the personal use of any controlled drug is no longer a criminal offense.

PRESCRIPTION DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Former Judge Richard Baumgartner tells his story of drug use – WBIR-TV

Drug addiction can happen to anyone. A criminal court judge for more than a decade, Richard Baumgartner was a family face at community function focused on the prevention of crime and drugs. However, the shocking revelation of his own addiction forced him to step down from the bench.

PRESCRIPTION DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Michael Jackson’s doctor sued for fueling his drug addiction – Star Lounge

Michael Jackson’s dermatologist Arnold Klein has been accused of fueling the pop star’s addiction to prescription drugs.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
Army hiring more counselors for alcohol abuse – ‎The Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The army is increasing its staff of substance abuse counselors by about 30 percent to help the rising number of troops with alcohol problems.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
What Parents Should Know About Party Schools – LifeGoesStrong

Headline-grabbing is list of top party schools put out by Princeton Review inevitably draws protests from administrators at the “winning” schools and probably lots of interest from potential students. But most parents look at this list in horror – as they should. You’re paying a fortune for your kid to get an education, not for partying.

PRESCRIPTION DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Unscrupulous pain clinic operators give good doctors a bad rap – Knoxville News Sentinel

Every month for two years, Freddie McMahan would get in his Lincoln LS and drive to a nearby pain clinic, where a doctor would prescribe him a cocktail of narcotic drugs. Initial prescriptions for codeine and Demerol to treat McMahan’s scoliosis eventually led to large amounts of OxyContin, Xanax and morphine. By the third week of his month’s supply, McMahan would run out, leaving him scrambling to get his fix somewhere else or go into withdrawal.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Our view: All must join war to put meth labs out of business – Utica Observer Dispatch

It’s time to go to war. Looking the other way is no longer an option because the losers in this fight could very well be your neighbors, your friends or even your own family. This war is against methamphetamine. Perhaps it’s being made right now in a home near yours. Methamphetamine is ugly. Users inject it, smoke it, snort it or swallow it. It affects the central nervous system, and is highly addictive. Results: Anxiety, psychotic and violent behavior, paranoia and brain damage. Addicts can die from continued use, if not before.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Opana spikes overdose deaths – Bluefield Daily Telegraph

During the press conference, Bluefield, Va., Police Chief Harry Cundiff said that the drug trade often to leads to crimes such as breaking and entry, metal thefts and passing bad checks. “If you take away drug addiction, it would put us out of a job.”

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Woman finds hope in recovery from prescription pill abuse – Sacramento Bee

A 2009 study found that 16 million Americans ages 12 and older took prescription drugs for nonmedical purposes at least once in the prior year, according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health by the Substance Abuse Mental Health Administration.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA/PORTUGAL
Portugal takes proper approach to ‘drug war’ – The Detroit News

Despite more than $40 billion spent every year on the US drug war and 500000 people behind bars on drug related offenses, drugs are as available as ever. But what is the alternative? What would happen if a society decided to treat drug use as a health issue instead of a criminal justice issue? What if we stopped the futile effort of using force to decrease drug consumption? What if we decriminalized drugs, not just marijuana, but all drugs like heroin, cocaine and meth?

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
CSI Star Charged With Hillbilly Heroin Possession – antiMUSIC.com

Former “CSI” star Gary Dourdan has been charged with drug possession — after officials determined he was carrying oxycontin when he smashed into several parked cars in Hollywood on June 13.

MARIJUANA/HEROIN – USA
Drug Enforcement Administration Says Marijuana Same As Heroin – ThirdAge

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) ruled on July 8, 2011 that marijuana has no accepted medical use and will remain classified as an addictive and dangerous drug, similar to heroin.

ALCOHOL – USA
New alcohol education program may avert binge drinking abuse – Oregon Daily Emerald

More than other schools, the University has its fair share of alcohol abuse. In fact, according to the American College Health Association, the number of University students who had used alcohol within the past month was 12 percent higher than students surveyed nationwide.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Abuse of Prescription Drugs by Young Teens on the Rise – Patch.com

There is good news coming from the 2010-2011 Pride Survey of young teen drug and alcohol use in Rockland County. But there is also disturbing information about the gradual increase in the abuse of prescription drugs by 10th graders and even 8th grade students.

ECSTASY – SCOTLAND
Fear over killer Ecstasy pills at music festival – Scotland on Sunday

POLICE have warned revellers at the T in the Park festival to beware of any drugs bought on the site after officers seized a shipment of Ecstasy with a street value of £80000. Police warned that Ecstasy tablets six times stronger than normal have been sold in the west of Scotland.

DRUG REHAB – USA
Rob Lowe: ‘I loved going to rehab’ – Digital Spy

Lowe, who entered rehab for drug and sex addiction in 1988 after a sex tape scandal, said that it was an “amazing experience”, because he was ready to start living his life the way he wanted. Charlie Sheen is wrong.

HEROIN – CANADA
Canada’s high court to rule on safe-injection site – Toronto Star

Supporters say it also reduces the spread of HIV and hepatitis, and curbs crime and open drug use. The federal government rejects that evidence, arguing the facility fosters addiction and runs counter to its tough-on-crime agenda.

DRUG ABUSE – AUSTRALIA
Our Say: Tackling drugs use in schools – The Cairns Post

THE State Government needs to strike a balance when it comes to dealing with drug use in schools. Educating students on the horrific consequences drugs have on the lives of those suffering addiction and their families would be a good start. Students suspended or expelled for being caught with illegal substances should be given a more intensive insight, no matter how confronting it may be, to try to stem what is a major problem in the community.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Dave Gahan says it’s a myth that musicians need drugs to be creative – Examiner.com

Artists don’t have to suffer to create art, said Depeche Mode’s lead vocalist Dave Gahan, as he discussed drug addiction on the red carpet at the 7th annual MusiCares MAP Fund Benefit. Later in the evening, Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler presented Gahan the Stevie Ray Vaughan Award on behalf of the organization.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
State cash will ease federal cuts for Maine Drug Enforcement Agency – Kennebec Journal

The cuts come at a time when urban police departments cite an increase in violent crime associated with drug addiction and rural agencies struggle with prescription drug diversion — also a byproduct of addiction. “There is not another issue in this state that affects communities and law enforcement as much as the drug issue.”

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Ex-drug addict Robert Hayes fights his way out of homelessness with comic strip – Philadelphia Inquirer

Together, the two men created “Li’l Addict,” a comic strip that tells Hayes’ life story as rawly as he has lived it. Hayes writes the narrative, creating fictional versions of the unsavory characters that dominated his alcohol- and drug-dependent years.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
Carolina DeLuca: Parents must be vigilant against alcohol use – Livingston Daily

‎Terry decided to challenge herself by downing 15 shots. Of course, she became drunk with all the unpleasantness that it entails. Terry’s friend supported her during the whole night as she lay sick on the bathroom floor. The whole night that Terry was struggling, she was actually dying. Erroneously, the parents reasoned that if they monitored what the girls drank, and if Terry stayed overnight, not driving home, that she would be safe. This is not uncommon

PRESCRIPTION DRUG ADDICTION/HEROIN – USA
Pain pill addicts use heroin when money gets tight, drug study says – Middletown Journal

The over prescription of opioid medications — like OxyContin, Vicodin, Percocet and methadone — is not only leading to increased overdose rates on those drugs, but may be leading to an increase in heroin use.

SUBSTANCE ABUSE – USA
Sentencing changes in some states at a glance – Seattle Post Intelligencer

Two bipartisan measures are pending that would repeal minimum mandatory sentences for drug offenses and nonviolent crimes, and increase substance abuse treatment for inmates. Conservative groups say the legislation could save Florida $ millions.

DRUG REHAB – USA
Bill would send drug bust money to treatment programs – Bloomington Pantagraph
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SPRINGFIELD — County prosecutors would be able to dedicate money seized during drug busts to local substance abuse treatment centers under a proposal approved Thursday by the Illinois House. State’s attorneys get a percentage of money or property.

DRUG AND ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
Local School Districts Get Grant to Fight Drug & Alcohol Use – KAALtv.com
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Officials say it’s a drug and alcohol abuse among teens is growing problem in our area. Now, the Minnesota Department of Human Services is putting its money where its mouth is, offering up a one-million-dollar grant to help Southeast Minnesota schools put a stop to the trend.

DRUG AND ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
Price per Head: Jets QB Ainge tries to recover from drug abuse – Bookmakersinc.co.uk ‎

The New York Post reported that Erik Ainge, quarterback, who was drafted in 2008 by the New York Jets as a very talented project, appears to have completely jeopardized his potential in the NFL, as he detailed his drug and alcohol use.

ALCOHOL – USA
NY Cracks Down on ‘Alcopop’ Abuse – Food Product Design‎

Chairman of the Senate Alcohol and Drug Abuse Committee unveiled an aggressive plan to restrict minors’ access to high-alcohol malted beverages or “alcopops” similar to Four Loko that have been deemed unsafe by the US Food and Drug Administration.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Meth Labs Growing Problem in Acadiana – KATC Lafayette News
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Narcotics agents arrested one man in connection with a shake and bake methamphetamine operation in Carencro Friday, after finding by-products in the 600 block of Benoit Road. Agents said they’ve seen a significant increase in meth labs just this year.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Georgia House Passes Prescription Drug Abuse Legislation – Rome News Wire
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The Georgia House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 36 with a vote of 117 to 45 on Thursday, showing tremendous bipartisan support for the measure that would help doctors and pharmacists identify prescription drug abusers.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Epidemic of pain-pill abuse continues unabated – The Seattle Times
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Clusky first tried OxyContin at age 17 with his school buddies, shortly after the high-powered narcotic painkiller went on the market. He was an occasional user and seller until about age 21, when he became fully addicted.