opioid crisis
Tribal leaders ask Congress for help with fentanyl crisis in Native American communities
WASHINGTON — Leaders of Native American tribes detailed the fentanyl crisis in Indigenous communities during a Wednesday U.S. Senate hearing. “This growing crisis is rooted in the longstanding structural inequities in Native communities,” said Sen. Brian Schatz, Democrat of Hawaii, who chairs the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. Alaska GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski said she […]
‘We’re burying them every week’: Tribes call on Inslee to declare opioid emergency
Misty Napeahi has been to hundreds of funerals for people who’ve died from opioid overdoses. “We’re burying them every week,” Napeahi, the vice chairwoman of the Tulalip Tribes of Washington, told Gov. Jay Inslee at a meeting between tribal and state governments last week. Napeahi, alongside other tribal leaders, is calling on Inslee to declare […]
Oregon governor plans to ask Legislature for money to revitalize Portland
This article was originally published by the Oregon Capital Chronicle. PORTLAND – With about six weeks until Gov. Tina Kotek’s secretive task force presents its plan to revitalize Portland at an annual gathering of business leaders, Kotek said Monday she expects to ask the Legislature to open the state’s pocketbooks to help the city. Kotek’s […]
After early opioid lawsuit against Purdue Pharma, competitors ramped up marketing
For some pharmaceutical companies, a 2007 Kentucky lawsuit against Purdue Pharma for its role in the opioid crisis appeared to be less of a warning than a business opportunity. That’s according to a recently published University of Washington study that found prescription opioid companies competing with Purdue, the maker of OxyContin, increased marketing efforts after […]
Oregon governor directs state police to crack down on fentanyl, shares few details
Oregon State Police will do more to crack down on fentanyl dealers under new direction from Gov. Tina Kotek, she announced Tuesday. Kotek shared the orders Tuesday at a second private meeting of her Portland Central City Task Force, a group that began meeting behind closed doors last month to come up with a plan […]
Efforts to roll back parts of Oregon drug decriminalization law gain momentum
This article was first published by the Oregon Capital Chronicle. A coalition funded by prominent Oregonians, including retired Nike co-founder Phil Knight, plans to ask Oregon voters in 2024 to roll back some of Measure 110, the voter-passed law that decriminalized the use of hard drugs. The group, the Coalition to Fix and Improve Ballot […]
Animal tranquilizer xylazine rarely found in WA’s illegal fentanyl, study finds
A powerful veterinary tranquilizer infiltrating the United States’ illicit drug market is only present in a small fraction of Washington’s fentanyl supply, according to a new report. The study, released last week by drug testing laboratory Millennium Health, looks at the presence of xylazine, also known as “tranq,” in about 160,000 urine drug tests across […]
University of Montana working on vaccine for fentanyl, heroin overdose
This article was first published by the Daily Montanan. A vaccine to prevent overdosing on fentanyl and one for heroin are in the works at the University of Montana and partner institutions. Human trials are expected to start in early 2024 for both vaccines, according to UM. UM researcher Jay Evans, who leads a campus […]
Price of illicit fentanyl in WA drops to as low as 50 cents a pill
You can now buy illicit fentanyl on Washington’s streets for as little as 50 cents a pill. That’s according to police and local advocates working with people who use drugs. They say fentanyl is selling for anywhere from 50 cents to $5 a pill, depending on location and dealer-user relationships. In Seattle, the price of […]
Xylazine or ‘tranq’ in WA: Rising drug threat or an empty one?
Paul LaKosky has about $30,000 worth of xylazine test strips sitting in a room next to his office at Tacoma Needle Exchange. The harm reduction group, which hands out clean syringes and other supplies to people who use drugs, has been testing illicit substances for xylazine since February. But LaKosky, the needle exchange’s director, only […]