Drug News

DRUG REHAB – USA
“Glee” Star Cory Monteith Talks Drug Problems, Rehab At 19 – Popdust

Monteith cites stealing money from a family member as his turning point, which led to rehab at 19 and ultimately to pursue acting.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Sen. Chuck Schumer’s proposal: Crack down on prescription drug abuse and pharmacy heists – New York Daily News

Schumer’s proposal, which comes in the wake of the Long Island pharmacy robbery that left four people dead, would limit the number of prescriptions doctors can write for addictive painkillers – and boost penalties for their theft.

DRUG ADDICTION – RUSSIA
The Curse of the Crocodile: Russia’s Deadly Designer Drug – TIME

There is no good medical explanation for why Pavlova survived her addiction. She developed a speech impediment, her pale blue eyes have something of a lobotomy patient’s vacant gaze, and her motor skills are shot from the brain damage.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Vigilance needed to battle prescription drug abuse – Knoxville News Sentinel

Prescription drug abuse is a community problem. Each of us plays an integral role in prevention. We can no longer stand idly by as our friends, family members and neighbors suffer the consequences of prescription drug abuse.

ALCOHOL – AUSTRALIA
Close ties can help with booze – Noosa News

Close relationships between teenagers and their parents may discourage teenagers from alcohol use according to research conducted by The University of Queensland’s Centre for Youth Substance Abuse Research and the Centre for Adolescent Health in Melbourne.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Oregon a test case for pseudoephedrine drug law – Tulsa World

Pharmaceutical lobbyists argued that the state’s existing law – essentially the same restrictions that are in place in Oklahoma now – were sufficient. Sen. Ginny Burdick, D-Portland, decided to test the situation. In one hour they had enough pseudoephedrine to make 200 hits of methamphetamine.

ALCOHOL – AUSTRALIA
Supermarkets take the lead on alcohol abuse in Alice Springs – ABC Online

The supermarket chain, which owns many major liquor outlets, will set its own floor price as a way to stop the flood of cheap wine into certain markets. From July 1 in Alice Springs it won’t be possible to buy a bottle of wine for less than eight dollars and two litre casks will be phased out.

ECSTASY – USA
Authorities link 2nd death to Dallas rave – BusinessWeek

A second death has been linked to a weekend electronic music festival in Dallas where a 22-year-old man died after running into freeway traffic on his way home. His friend told police that they bought what they thought was Ecstasy at the June 18-19 event “because they were at a rave.” He threw the second away because it didn’t feel like Ecstasy.

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 …