According to a survey released by the National Safety Council as part of Poison Prevention Week, 75 percent of U.S. employers report that their workplace has been directly affected by opioids, but only 17 percent feel extremely well prepared to deal with the problem.
Health Canada is proposing additional restrictions on the marketing and advertising of Class B opioid products, which are equal to or stronger than morphine, provided to health care professionals.
Employers' policies should restrict marijuana use to the extent permitted by law.
More than 60 percent of the nurses, nurse practitioners, physicians, and mental health professionals reported they did not feel adequately prepared to engage in motivational conversations with their patients to promote behavior change, according to a Kognito whitepaper co-authored by a faculty consultant at the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing.
"Both the FDA and the fentanyl makers failed to design and implement an effective monitoring program," said the study's senior author, Dr. G. Caleb Alexander, M.D., professor of epidemiology and medicine and co-director of the Center for Drug Safety and Effectiveness at the Bloomberg School.
FDA Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb announced Feb. 12 that the agency has issued its first warning letter under the Drug Supply Chain Security Act to McKesson Corp. for what he described as "violations highlighted by a concerning tampering incident that involved opioid medications."
"The 2019–2020 Most Wanted List advocates for 46 specific safety recommendations that can and should be implemented during these next two years," said NTSB Chairman Robert Sumwalt. "It also features broad, longstanding safety issues that still threaten the traveling public."
The grant helps the New York State Department of Labor provide disaster relief jobs and employment services to eligible individuals in counties impacted by widespread opioid use, addiction, and overdoses. Funding has been approved up to $5,591,446, with an initial award of $1,863,815.
Gov. Mike DeWine's executive order describes Ohio as "facing the worst drug epidemic in my lifetime [and] losing 13 or 14 people a day from accidental drug overdoses. Every county in Ohio and every city, town and village – urban and rural – is affected."
Researchers who surveyed Michigan medical marijuana users found 56 percent of participants reported driving within two hours of using marijuana, 51 percent reported they drove while a "little high," and 21 percent reported driving while "very high."
Gov. Tom Wolf and Attorney General Josh Shapiro recently announced the creation of a tool for reporting suspicious activity surrounding the prescribing or dispensing of prescription drugs, including opioids.
"Our analysis suggests that employers can't assume that workforce drug use isn't an issue in their industry. In fact, drug test positivity in the majority of industry sectors analyzed is growing," said Barry Sample, Ph.D., senior director, science and technology, for Quest Diagnostics Employer Solutions. "The highest rates were in consumer-facing industries, including jobs in retail and health care and social assistance."
The agency's stay provides temporary relief for pipeline and liquefied natural gas facility operators from certain federal pipeline safety regulations, including compliance with operator qualification requirements, but it does not relieve operators of their safety responsibility to use trained, non-impaired workers to perform operation and maintenance tasks.
"My administration has made fighting the opioid epidemic one of its top priorities, and this collaboration with Michael Bloomberg and Bloomberg Philanthropies will allow us to take an in-depth look at the areas where we can supplement our programs to successfully assist more Pennsylvanians," Gov. Tom Wolf said.
The Bronx surpassed Staten Island in 2017 as the borough with the highest rate of overdose deaths, according to Health Department data. "The Bronx needs more support to reduce drug overdoses, and the city is ready to provide that support," said Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Dr. Herminia Palacio.
High school students can submit an original 30-60 second public service announcement about the dangers of prescription opioid misuse for a chance to win the $10,000 first prize.
The only Nov. 6 statewide ballot measure to fail was North Dakota’s Measure 3 to legalize recreational use by adults.
The Drug Enforcement Administration's acting administrator, Uttam Dhillon, said the report underscores the magnitude of the nation's opioid crisis. "This report highlights the necessity of using all the tools at our disposal to fight this epidemic," he said.
U.S. Sen. Edward J. Markey sharply criticized an FDA advisory committee's vote to approve Dsuvia last month. It is up to 10 times more powerful than fentanyl and 1,000 times more powerful than morphine, he warned.
FTA's minimum random testing rate was lowered from 50 percent to 25 percent in 2007 and has remained there since then. But the violation rate in 2017 was 1.06 percent, requiring the agency to increase the random testing rate back to 50 percent.