Stimulant Users Are Caught in Fatal ‘Fourth Wave’ of Opioid Epidemic

Lynn Arditi, The Public’s Radio In Pawtucket, Rhode Island, near a storefront advertising “free” cellphones, J.R. sat in an empty back stairwell and showed a reporter how he tries to avoid overdosing when he smokes crack cocaine. KFF Health News is identifying him by his initials because he fears being arrested for using illegal drugs. … Read more

Syringe Exchange Fears Hobble Fight Against West Virginia HIV Outbreak

Taylor Sisk CHARLESTON, W.Va. — More than three years have passed since federal health officials arrived in central Appalachia to assess an alarming outbreak of HIV spread mostly between people who inject opioids or methamphetamine. Infectious disease experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention made a list of recommendations following their visit, including … Read more

Francis Collins on Supporting NIH and Finding Common Ground

The Host Julie Rovner KFF Health News @jrovner Read Julie’s stories. Julie Rovner is chief Washington correspondent and host of KFF Health News’ weekly health policy news podcast, “What the Health?” A noted expert on health policy issues, Julie is the author of the critically praised reference book “Health Care Politics and Policy A to … Read more

Milan prohibits outdoor smoking in Italy's toughest ban

Smokers in Italy’s financial and fashion capital of Milan risk being fined for lighting up on city streets or crowded public areas, after the country’s toughest ban comes into effect Wednesday. Those who defy the new prohibition in the polluted northern Italian city could be fined between 40 to 240 euros ($41 to $249), a punishment that does not sit well with all residents. Source link

WHO continues to urge China to share data five years after COVID-19

WHO recalled that on 31 December 2019, its Country Office in China picked up a media statement by the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission from their website on cases of “viral pneumonia” in the city. “In the weeks, months and years that unfolded after that, COVID-19 came to shape our lives and our world,” the UN … Read more