Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly articles from May 2002

Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly archives from May 2002

DEA reports higher rates of OxyContin-related deaths: Manufacturer disputes agency's findings.(Drug Enforcement Administration)(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... The prescription painkiller OxyContin may have played a role in 464 overdose-related deaths over the past two years, a rate much higher than previously reported, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in an ongoing study of...

CSAT recovery grant program will transition to services focus.(Center for Substance Abuse Treatment)(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... Applicants for $2 million in federal grants designed to promote the establishment and growth of grassroots organizations of people in recovery have learned that the money will not be awarded this year and that the grant program is being...

Iowa education initiatives helping M.D.s talk to patients.(medical doctors)(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... An Iowa-based integrated health care system is spearheading a community initiative designed to arm primary care physicians with resources and educational materials to help them recognize and treat drug users. The state's significant problem...

Study quantifies cost savings of alcohol interventions for youths.(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... Iowa State University researchers have calculated that brief family interventions designed to discourage teen drinking are both beneficial and cost-effective. The researchers found that each dollar invested in brief interventions produced...

SAMHSA has funds for adolescents, prevention, AIDS care.(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration)(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) last month announced the availability of funds for state prevention programs, HIV/AIDS treatment in minority communities, and residential treatment for adolescents under age...

The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) has presented Monsignor William B. O'Brien with the John P. McGovern, M.D. Award for his contributions to the field of addiction medicine. (Names in the News).(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) has presented Monsignor William B. O'Brien with the John P. McGovern, M.D. Award for his contributions to the field of addiction medicine. O'Brien, a Roman Catholic priest with the New York...

Directory lists acupuncture treatment sites. (Resources).(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... J&M Reports has released the charter edition of The Guide to Acu Detox Resources. This directory lists by state, province and city the 750 addiction treatment providers in North America who have been identified as utilizing acupuncture as part...

Antidepressant may be effective for smoking cessation in women. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... A smoking cessation medication that is also used to treat depression may be more effective than nicotine replacement therapy for women, according to findings in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. David Gonzales, Ph.D., of Oregon...

Calif. initiative reduces number of incarcerated women. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... Proposition 36, which calls for treatment instead of incarceration for nonviolent drug offenders, has contributed to a 10 percent drop in California's female prison population this year, according to state officials, reported the San Francisco...

Drug counselor programs see increased enrollment. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... Enrollment in California's drug and alcohol counselor certification programs has increased, reported the Los Angeles Times. Oxnard College, one of the state's oldest college-based training programs for chemical dependency professionals, has...

Prevention campaign responds to Utah overdose deaths. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... The Harm Reduction Project has launched an overdose prevention campaign in Utah in response to state medical examiner data that showed a seven-fold increase in drug deaths from 1992 to 2000. Among these deaths, 75 percent occurred in the Salt...

Supreme Court rejects drug-exclusion zones. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Cincinnati's drug-exclusion zones violate an individual's constitutional right to travel. Under the Cincinnati law, people convicted of certain drug offenses could be banned for up to one year from high-crime...

Enforcement policies may not reduce drug use. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... According to Peter Cohen, director of the Center for Drug Research at the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands is proof that enforcement policies have little impact on reducing drug use, reported the Houston Chronicle. Marijuana use in the...

Binge drinking may kill brain cells. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... Short-term binge drinking may kill brain cells, according to findings in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research. Researchers found that rats who had been given high amounts of alcohol over a short period of time had a...

Research links molecules to addictive behavior. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... Researchers at the University of Arizona have provided new insights into how molecules may control addiction, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The findings, which appear in the April 25 issue of Nature, suggest that drugs...

.08 DUI law effective in Illinois. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... The .08 per se law for driving under the influence (DUI) in Illinois continues to be associated with a decrease in the percentage of drivers involved in fatal car accidents, according to an updated analysis released by the National Highway...

Join Together has funds for treatment efforts. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... Join Together, a project of the Boston University School of Public Health, last week announced funding for 12 communities to become Demand Treatment! partners. Demand Treatment! is a Join Together initiative that works within communities to...

Yale to give financial aid to drug offenders. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... Yale University has announced that it will provide financial aid to students who are ineligible for federal assistance due to a past drug offense, reported the Yale Daily News. Under the new policy, students who are ineligible for federal aid...

Liquor companies continue to pursue television ads. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... Liquor companies are committed to buying television airtime on local broadcast affiliates and cable networks, according to a USA Today article published earlier this month. "NBC's decision is a temporary setback in our long-term plan to gain...

CDC report reveals economic costs of smoking. (Briefly Noted).(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... Smoking costs the United States more than $150 billion each year in health care costs and lost productivity, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). For each of the 22 billion packs of cigarettes sold in...

In case you haven't heard.(Brief Article)
May 6, 2002... According to the Washington Post, U.S. Customs Service officials recently found more than two pounds of heroin in the luggage of an unaccompanied five-year-old Colombian girl who had traveled from Bogota, Colombia to John F. Kennedy...

GAO: faulty data analysis impedes drug court evaluations.(General Accounting Office)
May 13, 2002... A government investigative agency, examining federally funded drug courts for the second time since 1997, has taken the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to task for failing in the effort to help assess the impact of such courts. DOJ's...

Treatment advocates respond to group's letter on methadone, pregnancy.(National Advocates for Pregnant Women director replies to letter from Children Requiring a Caring Kommunity)
May 13, 2002... A California-based organization that offers cash incentives for sterilization or long-term birth control to people with drug and/or alcohol problems has irked methadone advocates because of a letter it sent to methadone treatment clinics around...

Canadian study quantifies link between substance abuse and crime: alcohol abuse associated with violent offenses.
May 13, 2002... The Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse, a nonprofit organization based in Ottawa, released a report last month that confirmed a causal link between substance abuse and crime. Examining Correctional Service of Canada survey data of 8,500...

Conn. AG's efforts reflect unease over carve-outs.
May 13, 2002... Connecticut's top law enforcement official has joined a growing list of state attorneys general who are targeting health insurers and their behavioral health carve-out subcontractors in response to rising complaints about access to care. ...

SAMHSA announces funds for safe schools/healthy students.(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration)(Brief Article)
May 13, 2002... The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), in partnership with the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), this month announced the availability of grants for creating safe and...

American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM). (Names in the News).(Brief Article)
May 13, 2002... Lawrence S. Brown Jr., M.D., is the new president of the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM). Brown is senior vice president of Addiction Research and Treatment Corporation in Brooklyn, N.Y. and became ASAM's president-elect in April...

National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University. (Names in the News).(Brief Article)
May 13, 2002... Peter R. Dolan has been elected to the board of directors of the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University, announced CASA president Joseph A. Califano Jr. Dolan is the chairman and chief executive of...

Directory provides information on substance abuse services. (Resources).(National Directory of Drug and Alcohol Abuse Treatment Programs 2001 from the National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information)(Brief Article)
May 13, 2002... The newly updated National Directory of Drug and Alcohol Abuse Treatment Programs 2001 is now available. The directory is based on the National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (NSSATS) conducted by Mathematica Policy Research Inc.,...

SAMHSA provides grant information. (Resources).(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration)(Brief Article)
May 13, 2002... The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is offering a new issue of Snapshot, a series that provides information about SAMHSA's grant. programs. This issue gives a preliminary view of funding opportunities for...

Survey links SA,MI to surge in ER use. (Briefly Noted).(substance abuse, mental illness)(Brief Article)
May 13, 2002... Substance abuse and mental illness may contribute to high rates of emergency department use among homeless people, according to findings reported in the American Journal of Public Health. Researchers found that 40 percent of homeless and...

Alcohol consumption may increase employee absenteeism. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 13, 2002... Employees are nearly two times more likely to call in sick the day after alcohol is consumed, according to findings in the March issue of Psychology of Addictive Behaviors. Researchers found that 69 of 280 employees reported at least one...

German drug rooms reduce drug-related deaths. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 13, 2002... Marion Caspers-Merk, commissioner in charge of Germany's drug policies, has credited new drug-consumption rooms with contributing to a decline in drug-related deaths, reported Reuters. Germany opened new drug-consumption rooms throughout the...

Cocaine use associated with heart attack, stroke. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 13, 2002... Frequent cocaine use may increase the risk of heart attack or stroke, according to findings in the American Journal of Cardiology. Researchers found that frequent cocaine exposure disrupts the balance between blood-thickening and blood-thinning...

Heavy marijuana use may lower IQ. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 13, 2002... Heavy marijuana use may lower a person's IQ, according to findings published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. Researchers found that the IQ scores of individuals who smoked marijuana more than five times a week decreased by 4.1...

Millions of Americans have smoking-related illnesses. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 13, 2002... About 8.2 million (one in 25) Americans suffer from a cigarette-related illness, researchers reported at the annual meeting of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco (SRNT). Andrew Hyland and colleagues at the Roswell Park Cancer...

In case you haven't heard.(Congressional pages dismissed for marijuana usage)(Brief Article)
May 13, 2002... Representative Richard A. Gephardt's (D.-Mo.) office reported this month that 11 pages in the U.S. House of Representatives have been dismissed for smoking marijuana, according to the New York Times. The pages are high school juniors who...

SAMHSA to award $2 million to support Sept. 11 rescue workers.(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration)(Brief Article)
May 13, 2002... The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services. Administration (SAMHSA) last week announced the availability of $2 million in grants to support mental health and substance abuse services for firefighters, police and other rescue workers who...

Mass. threatens to pull Medicaid funding from state's methadone providers: Unprecedented action could shut down system.
May 20, 2002... Amid a fiscal crisis that is affecting many states throughout the nation, lawmakers in Massachusetts are aiming their budget-cutting pens on methadone treatment providers -- a proposed move that could effectively remove methadone treatment as...

State directors testify to need for additional block grant funds: more money sought for data management.
May 20, 2002... Testifying this month before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies, state substance abuse agency directors made clear their priorities for fiscal 2003 appropriations. Topping...

FDA advisory panel: Acamprosate data show effectiveness; Recommendation bodes well for final approval.
May 20, 2002... An advisory committee to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) concluded this month that four clinical trials of the drug acamprosate demonstrate the drug's efficacy in maintaining abstinence for people with alcohol dependence. This has raised...

N.Y. governor will try again to reform drug laws.
May 20, 2002... New York Gov. George E. Pataki earlier this month reiterated his intent to reform the state's tough and controversial Rockefeller drug sentencing measures. However, addiction treatment advocates say that based on what they currently know of the...

Walters critical of ONDCP's anti-drug media campaign.(Office of National Drug Control Policy)(Brief Article)
May 20, 2002... In an interview with the Wall Street Journal last week, John P. Walters, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), said that ONDCP's National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign had failed to reduce drug use rates...

Wash. state study links SA with academic problems.(substance abuse)
May 20, 2002... A study released last week by the University of Washington closely links substance abuse and violence and delinquency in a student's social environment to lower academic achievement. The study found that among groups of middle school and...

Study finds inconsistent link between economic status, adolescent SA.(substance abuse)(Brief Article)
May 20, 2002... A study published in this month's Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine found that while there is a relationship between socioeconomic status and adolescent use of cocaine, marijuana, cigarettes and alcohol, the relationship was not...

CSAP announces funds for Ecstasy, meth. (Resources).(Center for Substance Abuse Prevention)(Brief Article)
May 20, 2002... The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA's) Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) has announced the availability of fiscal year 2002 funds for Ecstasy and Meth Infrastructure Inhalant Interventions...

Anne Benedict Hovland has been named the executive vice president of development for the Hazelden Foundation. (Names in the News).(Brief Article)
May 20, 2002... Anne Benedict Hovland has been named the executive vice president of development for the Hazelden Foundation. She will begin her new position on May 31 and will manage all fundraising activities at Hazelden. Hovland led the fundraising efforts...

SCHIP retention rate better than expected. (Briefly Noted).(State Children's Health Insurance Program)
May 20, 2002... States are doing better than they thought they were at keeping eligible children enrolled in the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), according to a report from the National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP). The report...

HMO enrollment continues to decline. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 20, 2002... Health maintenance organization (HMO) enrollment continues to decline, according to InterStudy Publication's HMO Industry Report 12.1, part II of its Competitive Edge series. Between July 1,2000 and July 1,2001, the number of HMO enrollees...

Consumers consider cost when choosing a health plan. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 20, 2002... Cost considerations play a major role in privately insured people's decision to enroll in health maintenance organizations (HMOs), according to a study by the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC) published in Health Affairs. People...

Meth. use associated with hepatitis A outbreak. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 20, 2002... According to health officials in Polk County, Fla., methamphetamine users may be behind an outbreak of Hepatitis A in the area, reported the Associated Press. Since the beginning of this year, 138 of the county's 500,000 residents have been...

Halfway house appeals federal decision. (Briefly Noted).(Dismas House)(Brief Article)
May 20, 2002... Dismas House, a Kansas City, Kan.-based halfway house, has asked federal authorities to reconsider the Federal Bureau of Prisons' decision to move residents from Kansas City to Leavenworth, Kan., reported the Kansas City Star. Dismas House...

Congressional committee meets to discuss college drinking. (Briefly Noted).(Senate Governmental Affairs Committee)(Brief Article)
May 20, 2002... U.S. Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (D-Conn.) called the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee to meet last week to examine new federal research on excessive drinking by college students. The Committee heard testimony from medical and law enforcement...

Ecstasy may impair memory, cause disorientation. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 20, 2002... Even low doses of Ecstasy may cause spatial disorientation and memory problems, according to findings in the journal Behavioral Neuroscience. Researchers found that rats who were given Ecstasy made about four times as many errors while...

In case you haven't heard.(Brief Article)
May 20, 2002... According to an article in last month's issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, some people will adopt healthier attitudes when confronted with evidence of how their unhealthy behaviors are harming their bodies. Modifiable...

Mass. moves closer to ending Medicaid funding for methadone.
May 27, 2002... The Massachusetts House of Representatives has passed a state budget that eliminates methadone treatment as an optional benefit under Medicaid, thus placing Massachusetts a Senate vote away from being the first state to legislatively exclude...

NAATP annual meeting focuses on recognizing addiction as disease.(National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers)
May 27, 2002... The National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers (NAATP) held its annual conference last week in Scottsdale, Ariz., with the theme, "Creating and Maintaining a Value-Added Environment." With an impressive array of speakers...

Univ. of Ga. treatment center study examines innovations.(in substance abuse treatment)
May 27, 2002... Since 1995, the University of Georgia's National Treatment Center Study, funded by the National Institutes on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), has examined the practices of 400 private substance abuse treatment...

Hazelden names interim CEO as Hilger departs post.
May 27, 2002... Hazelden board of directors member Ellen L. Breyer will serve as the internationally known addiction treatment provider's interim president and chief executive while the Hazelden board seeks a permanent replacement for Nick Hilger. Hilger...

Partial-hospital program utilizes an apartment setting.(for substance abuse treatment)
May 27, 2002... A Florida-based recovery center is offering its clients with alcohol and substance abuse problems residence in a nearby private community setting, promoting recovery and a communal bond among its patients. The Florida Recovery Center,...

CDC report finds drop in teen smoking rates.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2002... A report released this month by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) revealed that smoking rates among U.S. high school students has continued to decline since 1997. These findings are from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey...

John Daigle. (Names in the News).(receives lifetime achievement award from the University of South Florida's Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute)(Brief Article)
May 27, 2002... The University of South Florida's Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute presented John Daigle, executive director of the Florida Alcohol and Drug Abuse Association, with its annual Lifetime Achievement Award for his contributions in...

Stephan Ferrante. (Names in the News).(Brief Article)
May 27, 2002... The Institute also presented Stephan Ferrante, the director for Broward County's Elderly and Veterans Services Division, with the annual Innovator Award for his development of a model substance abuse service system for the elderly.

Anne Benedict Hovland. (Names in the News).(Hazelden Foundation)(Brief Article)
May 27, 2002... Anne Benedict Hovland has been named the executive vice president of development for the Hazelden Foundation. She will begin her new position on May 31 and will manage all fundraising activities at Hazelden. Hovland led the fundraising efforts...

Trial on abuse at school for troubled youth begins. (Briefly Noted).(Heartland Christian Academy charged with abuse)(Brief Article)
May 27, 2002... The trial has begun for four people who are facing abuse charges for allegedly forcing students at a Missouri school for troubled youth to shovel manure as a punishment, reported the Associated Press. In March and April of 2001, three students...

Overeating associated with dopamine increases. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 27, 2002... Food-deprived subjects who were allowed to see, smell and taste their favorite foods showed elevated dopamine levels that may be similar to what individuals experience when craving drugs, according to findings that will be published in the June...

Florida HMOs see lower market share. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 27, 2002... Florida health maintenance organizations' (HMOs) market share fell last year to its lowest level since 1997, reported the Orlando Sentinel. In 2001 about 29 percent of the Florida population was insured by some type of HMO, compared with 32...

Drug officials discuss amphetamine use in Asia. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 27, 2002... Drug officials from China, Laos, Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Vietnam and the United Nations are concerned by the spread of amphetamine based drugs through China and parts of Southeast Asia, reported the Agence France Presse. Over 80. percent...

U.S. gives money to support anti-drug programs in Asia. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 27, 2002... According to a U.S. embassy official, the United States has given a U.N. regional agency $300,000 for anti-drug programs in Asia, reported the Associated Press. This is the first time the U.S. has given funds for a specific project of the U.N....

Tobacco use declines among New Jersey youth. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 27, 2002... Cigarette smoking dropped by 42 percent in middle schools and 11 percent in high schools in New Jersey from 1999 to 2001, according to a survey commissioned by the state's Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS). Cigarette use among...

National panels form to address SA treatment and discrimination. (Briefly Noted).(substance abuse)(Brief Article)
May 27, 2002... Join Together, a project of Boston University School of Public Health, has announced the formation of two national panels that will develop policy recommendations to address the need for quality substance abuse treatment and the impact of...

DEA, women legislators partner to fight club drugs. (Briefly Noted).(Drug Enforcement Administration; National Foundation of Women Legislators)(Brief Article)
May 27, 2002... The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) will partner with the National Foundation of Women Legislators (NFWL) to educate the American public about the dangers of club drugs, such as Ecstasy and GHB, according to a DEA press release. The...

Women may benefit more from cessation. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 27, 2002... Women may benefit more from quitting smoking than men do, according to findings presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco (SRNT). Researchers found that women who quit smoking improved their lung...

Methamphetamine abuse causes concern in Utah. (Briefly Noted).(Brief Article)
May 27, 2002... More than 100,000 Utah residents, about one-fifth of them under age 18, are addicted to alcohol or drugs, according to the latest annual report issued by the State Division of Substance Abuse. But methamphetamine abuse among women is of...

In case you haven't heard.
May 27, 2002... European researchers have concluded that family relationships, particularly mother/child relationships, are the key to preventing teen drug use, according to WebMD Medical News. "I believe that effective prevention of drug use is more about...