Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly articles from August 2005

Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly archives from August 2005

Students still face possible loss of financial aid for drug convictions.
August 1, 2005... For students who receive or want to receive federal financial aid for higher education, the news from the U.S. House of Representatives is mostly good--but it's too soon to celebrate, and there's a down side too. The good news is that the ban...

Odyssey House to help homeless find drug treatment and housing.(TREATMENT INNOVATION)
August 1, 2005... Thanks to a $2 million grant from the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Odyssey House, a therapeutic community (TC) based in New York City's tougher neighborhoods, will hire extra staff to go into...

Integrated care works best when it's 'enhanced' with patient services: PRISM-E.(Primary Care Research in Substance Abuse and Mental Health for the Elderly)
August 1, 2005... New data from a large-scale study on integrating primary care with substance abuse and mental health services calls into question the idea that integration systems always work best. The research, discussed last month at the National Institute...

Patient matching study: 'overtreatment' better than 'undertreatment'.
August 1, 2005... Is inpatient rehabilitation, regular outpatient or intensive outpatient better for treating alcoholism? Research from the National Development and Research Institutes in New York suggests that matching individuals to the mode of treatment...

Anesthesiologists exposed to airborne fentanyl in operating rooms: study.
August 1, 2005... Addiction may be an airborne disease for anesthesiologists and other health professionals, researchers at the University of Florida's College of Medicine suggest. Suspecting the high rates of addiction in anesthesiologists have to do with more...

Congress lifts 30-patient group cap on buprenorphine treatment.
August 1, 2005... As expected, Congress has passed legislation to lift the 30-patient limit on buprenorphine treatment. The July 27 action means that physician groups are no longer limited to a total of 30 patients in buprenorphine treatment for opioid...

Joint Commission receives SAMHSA grant for accrediting opioid treatment programs.(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations has received a grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to partially subsidize its efforts to accredit opioid treatment programs. The...

White collar crime up among drug addicts.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Identity theft appears to be increasingly responsible for funding methamphetamine addicts, reported the Associated Press. According to Jeff Shelton, with the Oklahoma City field office of the Secret Service, a federal identity theft task force...

Colleges campaign to curb drinking.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Although alcohol abuse contributes to an estimated 1,700 student deaths annually in the United States, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), there appears to be a trend toward greater acceptance of those...

NIH offers grants for drug abuse research.(Resources)(National Institutes for Health )(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... The National Institutes for Health (NIH), along with the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), has announced several research grants to advance knowledge of alcohol and other...

NIAAA updates clinician's guide on alcohol abuse.(United States. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), a branch of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has announced the release of "Helping Patients who Drink Too Much: A Clinician's Guide." Available free online...

According to the Association for Addiction Professionals (NAADAC), Keith L. Liles, BA, LCDC, ADCII, ICADC, was recently awarded the Mel Schulstad Professional of the Year Award.(NAMES in the News)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... According to the Association for Addiction Professionals (NAADAC), Keith L. Liles, BA, LCDC, ADCII, ICADC, was recently awarded the Mel Schulstad Professional of the Year Award for outstanding contribution to leadership and legislative efforts...

Hythiam, Inc.(NAMES in the News)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Hythiam, Inc., a leading healthcare services management company, has appointed Arlandis Rush to Vice President of Government Programs. In his new post, Rush will be responsible for business development with drug courts and serve as liaison with...

Coming up ...(Calendar)
August 1, 2005... The Performance Institute will hold the 2005 National Summit on Recruitment and Retention of Social Services Professionals on Aug. 8-9 in Arlington, Va. To register visit www.PerformanceWeb.org. Foundations Associates will sponsor "Critical...

In case you haven't heard ...
August 1, 2005... The Blackberry, a hand-held computer that allows users to access email from wherever they are, may be enabling something akin to an addiction. The telltale sign is a "rush," but it does help the modern-day work addict be productive--or at least...

Medicaid costs go down if patients have access to substance abuse treatment.
August 8, 2005... Adding substance abuse treatment to a managed Medicaid plan saves money, according to a study conducted by Kaiser Permanente and released July 28. The study shows for the first time that for the Medicaid population, perceived as one of the most...

Most alcohol problems missed by health plans: study: standardized treatment guidelines needed.
August 8, 2005... Health plans are missing 9 out of 10 cases of alcohol dependence or abuse, and the reason is that most are not using a standardized instrument for assessment or standardized guidelines for treatment, according to research done for a coalition...

Doctors call in media to shun "meth baby" myth.(From the Field ...)
August 8, 2005... Editor's note: Last week more than 90 leading medical doctors, scientists, psychological researchers and treatment specialists released a letter calling on the media to stop the use of such terms as "ice babies" and "meth babies." The letter is...

Most young people have seen anti-drug ads; campaign having an impact.
August 8, 2005... About 84 percent of young people ages 12-17 say they have seen or heard an alcohol or drug prevention message somewhere, whether on posters, pamphlets, radio, TV or other sources, according to a new report from the federal Substance Abuse and...

Methadone treatment in a primary setting successful: study.
August 8, 2005... At least some methadone patients who have done well in a regular methadone clinic can successfully graduate to primary care, suggests a study from Seattle's Harborview Medical Center. The center took 30 highly stable patients from a nearby...

President signs bupe bill.(Briefly Noted)
August 8, 2005... On August 2 President Bush signed an amendment to the Controlled Substances Act that lifts the 30-patient limit on buprenorphine. This expands the 2000 Drug Addiction and Treatment Act to allow groups of doctors to prescribe the medication to...

ADHD in children born to smoking mothers.(Briefly Noted)(attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder)(Brief Article)
August 8, 2005... While nicotine exposure has long been discouraged during pregnancy, a new study adds to the evidence of possible adverse effects of a mother smoking on her developing fetus: increased risk for attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)....

House measures aim to stem meth smuggling.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
August 8, 2005... Despite state restrictions on cold medicine sales, the Oregonian reported that only 35 percent of methamphetamine is made from the pseudoephedrine found in such medicines. The U.S. House recently adopted a set of measures that attempt to stem...

NY takes over gambling addiction programs.(Resources)
August 8, 2005... The New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services has taken over the administration of the state's ten pathological gambling treatment programs, eleven prevention programs and one outreach and education program. The state...

Demand Reduction for the Office of National Drug Control Policy.(appointment of Bertha Madras as a Deputy Director)(Brief Article)
August 8, 2005... Dr. Bertha Madras has been appointed Deputy Director for Demand Reduction for the Office of National Drug Control Policy. The State Associations of Addiction Services (SAAS) announced the nomination, citing the critical role that Dr. Madras...

Coming up ...(Calendar)
August 8, 2005... September is National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month and hundreds of events are taking place across the nation. A few are listed below. For a full list, visit http://www.recoverymonth.gov/. Sept. 1-30: MethEd for Power will hold...

In case you haven't heard ...
August 8, 2005... Some mothers involved in drug cases face investigation by child welfare authorities and even incarceration; but at least in Wood County, Ohio, there's hope for an alternative. Last week The Toledo Blade reported that Common Pleas Judge Alan...

California struggles with how to make offenders show up for treatment.(Proposition 36 and SB 803)
August 15, 2005... Proposition 36, the California voter initiative that helps divert drug users to treatment instead of jail and prison, is facing stiff opposition in its current form. The law, approved by California voters as the Substance Abuse and Crime...

Prisons and jails: Methadone's next growth area.
August 15, 2005... Methadone, kept out of prisons and jails for decades due to a misguided belief that inmates didn't need treatment, is poised for expansion into the entire corrections field. Large- and small-scale programs which allow methadone dosing to...

Surgeon general: substance abuse problems affect 87% of the disabled.
August 15, 2005... Substance abuse is one of the major secondary problems that keeps 87 percent of people with disabilities from being as healthy as they might be, says the new Surgeon General's report: "Call to Action to Improve the Health and Wellness of...

Methadone for jail inmates coming to Washington State County.
August 15, 2005... If all goes according to plan, jail inmates in King County, Washington will be able to participate in methadone treatment by next year. Under a project called the Jail-based Opioid-Dependency Engagement & Treatment Program (JODET), inmates who...

Naltrexone and CBT an effective combination: study.(Cognitive behavioral therapy)
August 15, 2005... Patients treated for alcohol dependence with naltrexone did significantly better with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) than with brief motivational enhancement therapy (MET), a study from the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC)...

Body fat and tobacco a lethal combination.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
August 15, 2005... In a study published in the American Heart Association's online journal Circulation, researchers suggested that secondhand smoke contributes to higher rates of metabolic syndrome in teenagers, particularly among the overweight. The condition is...

Pseudoephedrine lands behind pharmacy counters.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
August 15, 2005... Walgreen Co. has announced it will remove all products containing pseudoephedrine from its shelves, doing its part as the nation's largest drugstore chain in the battle against methamphetamine production, reported Reuters. Cold formulas and...

Ex-con wins appeals court victory.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
August 15, 2005... In a ruling that surprised legal experts, a former inmate of the Harris County Jail won a ruling from the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in a civil rights lawsuit brought against the county in 2004, reported the Houston Chronicle. George...

Nicotine replacement use on the rise.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
August 15, 2005... Although nicotine replacement therapies (NRT) such as the nicotine patch and nicotine gum are still not widely used, easier over-the-counter access to these products may have led to a usage increase between 1993 and 2001, according to a study...

Seniors group sues tobacco on behalf of Medicare.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
August 15, 2005... In a lawsuit against the tobacco industry, filed recently in the U.S. District Court in Boston, the United Seniors Association is taking advantage of a "little-known but recently strengthened provision," reported the Wall Street Journal. These...

States address online cigarette sales tax.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
August 15, 2005... Internet tobacco sales cost the states millions of dollars in lost tax revenue each year, and some states have begun to address the issue. The Buffalo News reported that Washington State will pursue customers who purchased cigarettes online,...

NIH grants for alcohol-related HIV research.(Resources National Institutes of Health Human Immunodeficiency Virus)(Brief Article)
August 15, 2005... Together the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse (NIAAA) and the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) have joined to offer grant awards to support research on the "effectiveness of structural interventions that reduce the risk of HIV/...

Consumer Guide to disputes with health plans.(Resources)(Brief Article)
August 15, 2005... The Kaiser Family Foundation has announced the availability of the Consumer Guide to Handling Disputes with your Employer or Private Health Plan, 2005 Update. All health plans have internal and external review processes, an understanding of...

The Johnson Institute has announced it will honor three members of the National Association for Addiction Professionals (NAADAC) at its annual America Honors Recovery luncheon on September 22.(Names in the News)(Brief Article)
August 15, 2005... The Johnson Institute has announced it will honor three members of the National Association for Addiction Professionals (NAADAC) at its annual America Honors Recovery luncheon on September 22. Among the eight honorees selected, those from...

Coming up ...(substance abuse meetings and conferences)(Calendar)
August 15, 2005... Foundations Associates will sponsor "Critical Connections in Co-Occurring Treatment" Aug 29-31 in Baltimore. Visit http://co-connections.com for more information. The Michigan Association of Community Mental Health will hold its 6th Annual...

In case you haven't heard ...(fruit flies can become intoxicated)(Brief Article)
August 15, 2005... There's no doubt about it now: fruit flies can get hangovers, and some can be cheap drunks. According to the current issue of the journal Nature, after 20 minutes of exposure to ethanol vapor--the amount it would take to intoxicate a normal...

How treatment programs can participate and benefit.(National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month)
August 22, 2005... Amid the quiet of August as Congress takes a break and children head back to school, treatment programs and government officials across the country are preparing for the monthlong festival that is National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery...

AMA polls find parents give alcohol to teens and their friends.(Recovery Month)(American Medical Association)
August 22, 2005... There's a perception among many parents that it's okay for their teenaged children to drink alcohol--as long as the drinking is done at home in the presence of the parents. In fact, one out of four American parents with teenagers supports this...

The marketplace of meth: spotting the tipping point.(From The Field ...)(methamphetamine)
August 22, 2005... The recent (re)introduction of methamphetamine into the drug culture has created a stir well beyond its alchemical properties. Both local and national media outlets have elucidated, if not dramatized, the destructive and highly addictive...

NY governor vetoes UPPL-repeal bill.(Uniform Accident and Sickness Provision Law)
August 22, 2005... It wasn't a big surprise: insurance companies won the battle--again--to save the Uniform Accident and Sickness Provision Law (UPPL) in New York State. Gov. George Pataki vetoed the measure August 17. He had vetoed a similar bill last year. ...

Brain-scan study shows methamphetamine and HIV combined change brain size, cognitive function.
August 22, 2005... The first study to use brain scans to look at effects on the brain structure from both HIV infection and methamphetamine dependence shows both are associated with cognitive impairment and changes in the brain. But the HIV and methamphetamine...

Computerized intervention treats alcohol abuse.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
August 22, 2005... A brief computerized intervention device has shown some promise in reducing unhealthy alcohol use, according to a study published in the Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment. Researchers conducted a trial with 61 individuals diagnosed with...

Synthetic cannabis drugs could treat bowel disease.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
August 22, 2005... A study published in the journal Gastroenterology suggests that patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) could benefit from treatment with cannabis-based drugs. The BBC News reported (July 31) that scientists with Bath University in the...

Baltimore citizens protest location of treatment facility.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
August 22, 2005... Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, drug treatment programs must be treated the same way as other medical treatment facilities, with permission to set up shop despite citizens' concerns. According to the Baltimore Sun, this law was...

State grants aid Vermont battle against substance abuse.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
August 22, 2005... Governor Jim Douglas of Vermont has awarded New Directions grants to 13 local substance abuse prevention coalitions, as part of his Drug Education, Treatment, Enforcement and Rehabilitation (DETER) program. The multi-million dollar DETER...

Smokers catch on to tobacco's false claims.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
August 22, 2005... Roughly 25 percent of smokers believe incorrectly that "light" or "reduced-exposure" cigarettes are less hazardous to their health because they contain less nicotine, tar or other toxins, reported HealthDay News. However, recent law suits...

Request for applications.(Resources)(Brief Article)
August 22, 2005... The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) with support from the National Institute on Mental Health (NIMH) and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has announced a plan to commit approximately $1.9 million in...

Coming up ...(Brief Article)(Calendar)
August 22, 2005... The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University will present "So Help Me God: Substance Abuse, Religion and Spirituality," Weds. Sept. 21, in New York City. For more information or to register, visit...

In case you haven't heard ...(Brief Article)
August 22, 2005... For about four dollars, you can buy some pills that claim to prevent hangovers. Called "Cheerz Anti Hangover," this nutritional supplement works, according to the product maker, by helping the body process acetaldehyde, a toxic by-product of...

Researchers call rapid opioid detox unsafe.
August 29, 2005... According to the first published randomized, controlled study of heroin detoxification assisted by anesthesia, in which an addict supposedly undergoes the worst of the withdrawal while unconscious, this method is no more effective than...

'Charitable choice' still in flux as religious organizations compete for treatment grants.(Faith-Based Organizations)
August 29, 2005... What is the role of "faith-based organizations" in substance abuse treatment? And do the rules for treatment providers differ if the provider is "faith-based"? These questions persist two years after the issuance of the final rule for the...

Tainted heroin caused cardiovascular effects in first part of 2005.
August 29, 2005... In the first four months of this year, 26 people in East Coast states had cardiovascular effects after using heroin, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported this month. In eight of the cases the veterinary pharmaceutical,...

Coordination urged between corrections and state substance abuse directors.
August 29, 2005... Federal initiatives for assistance for people coming out of the prison system into the community should be coordinated with the state substance abuse director, says the National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors (NASADAD) in...

White House under fire for drug policy.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
August 29, 2005... Drug policy experts are not in agreement over how the White House should address its current drug policy, amid escalating complaints that the administration has not adequately addressed what many feel is a methamphetamine crisis. Some experts...

Anxiety disorders could complicate alcohol treatment.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
August 29, 2005... Although it is well established that alcohol dependence and anxiety disorder co-occur at high rates (possibly as high as 50 percent), the results of a recent study could have implications for the treatment approach for individuals who suffer...

Needle-exchange programs called illegal by New Jersey court.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
August 29, 2005... An Atlantic City state appeals court ruled last week that needle-exchange programs violate a criminal code provision prohibiting the possession, use and distribution of drugs and drug paraphernalia, reported the New Jersey Star-Ledger. The...

Kentucky to begin monitoring clinic deaths.(Briefly Noted)(Brief Article)
August 29, 2005... The Kentucky State Narcotic Authority plans to begin compiling data on deaths resulting from treatment at state methadone clinics, the Lexington Herald-Leader reported August 10. According to Mac Bell, administrator for the Authority which...

Call for Participation: CADCA recovery survey.(Resources)(Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America )(Brief Article)(Advertisement)
August 29, 2005... The Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA) has launched a research project with the ultimate goal of reducing the stigma of addiction and educating people about treatment options. CADCA is administering a survey to individuals aged...

Grants available for studying reduced-exposure tobacco.(Resources)(Brief Article)(Advertisement)
August 29, 2005... The National Institutes of Health (NIH) in cooperation with the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) have announced the availability of several two-year grants (generally with a limit of $200,000 per...

Coming up.(Brief Article)(Calendar)
August 29, 2005... The Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University (CASA) sponsors the nationwide Family Day--A Day to Eat Dinner with your Children, a national effort to promote parental engagement as a way to reduce youth substance abuse....

In case you haven't heard ...(Brief Article)
August 29, 2005... No higher power in prison? Five inmates are suing the Alabama prison where they are receiving substance abuse treatment, with a demand that the treatment be secular, according to The Associated Press. The lawsuit, filed recently by the American...