Author: Leonard Buschel

And Then What? –  Dec. 14, 2017 – A new study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry suggests that ketamine could also be effective as a fast-acting treatment to prevent suicide … When it comes to preventing suicide, true breakthroughs are hard to come by. CONTINUED @ Gizmodo.com

More Sober Beds Needed –  Dec. 14, 2017 – “I know the county does not want us here because of their action of serving a … warrant to come in our house and count beds,” John Shinholser, a Hanover resident, said. “Reflect on what you’re doing when you send the police down there and bureaucrats and want to infringe on our right to exercise our constitutional freedoms in this county. I’m irritated, frustrated but it don’t mean we can’t overcome this.” CONTINUED @ Richmond.com 

High During Surgery –  Dec. 15, 2017 – Beverly Hills police on Wednesday arrested a doctor who is accused of being under the influence of narcotics while handling a patient. The 71-year-old victim died as a result … During their investigation, detectives concluded Kim allegedly administered a lethal dose of Demerol to the patient during recovery. CONTINUED @ NYDailyNews.com 

Lose/Lose –  DEC. 06, 2017 – In early 2016, Health Net suddenly cut off payments to hundreds of for-profit substance abuse centers that had treated its enrollees … It’s not like being balance-billed for a broken leg,” says Joan Borsten, a former treatment center owner and vice president of the addiction center coalition. “Think of the impact when you’re just getting out of recovery and you’re handed a bill for $30,000.” CONTINUED @ LATimes.com

Progress Not Perfection –  December 16, 2017 – Cuomo says such facilities are vital to breaking the cycle of addiction and an example of steps the state is taking to expand treatment and services for those struggling with addiction… CONTINUED @ SeattleTimes.com 

Genocide 2.0 – Dec. 17, 2017 – The Cherokee suit argues that the pharmacy chains Walmart, Walgreensand CVS Health, as well as the giant drug distributors McKesson, Cardinal Health and AmerisourceBergen, flouted federal drug-monitoring laws and allowed prescription opioids to pour into the Cherokee territory at some of the highest rates in the country. Such neglect, Mr. Hembree claims, amounts to exploitation of a people. CONTINUED @ NYTimes.com 

Heads Up –  Dec. 16, 2017 – “If you keep the device by your body you will exceed the safety limits provided by the FCC.” … Reduce the use of cell phones to stream audio or video, or to download or upload large files … Children and teens seem to be at a particular risk, she added, since their brains are still developing and more vulnerable to the radiation emitted by cell phones. CONTINUED @ Forbes.com

They’re Not ALL Bad –  December 17, 2017 – Thirteen-hundred miles from his rural Arkansas home, Tyler McCollough paces across a motel parking lot, veins bulging at his temple, anxiously gripping himself as the pangs of heroin withdrawal intensify … But one aspect of the problem hasn’t been widely examined: What connection, if any, exists between the outsized number of rehab centers in Southern California and the region’s fast-growing homeless population? There’s evidence to suggest a portion of the growth in some Orange County cities, and to a lesser degree in Los Angeles, can be attributed to the rehab industry’s…

ARTIST’S CORNER – Gabor Maté –  Q. If you are in recovery, what was your Drug of Choice and when did you discontinue its use? A. I have never had a substance addiction, but have engaged in behaviors that have been addictive in nature and in their consequences. These have chiefly been in the areas of compulsive shopping and workaholism. Q. Who is your favorite: Activist? A. Noam Chomsky, a living encyclopedia and embodiment of truth in action. Q. How do you measure success? A. Success is finding peace of mind while being engaged with the world as fully as one is called to. ALL 20 Answers @…

Tears for Xmas –  Dec. 15, 2017 – Jessica McCutcheon recently regained custody from the Department of Social Services of her three children, the News & Observer reported. She had struggled with drug addiction and had been a victim of domestic violence but has turned her life around. CONTINUED @ WHTR.com

Good Luck Guy –  DEC. 15, 2017 – Artie Lange’s life is at stake … And that’s why friends are getting him on a private jet to rehab after appearing in court Friday. Artie’s attorney, Frank Arleo, tells TMZ … Artie pled guilty to possession of a controlled dangerous substance at a hearing in Essex County court in Newark, NJ. CONTINUED @ TMZ.com 

Not Sober Living Approved? –  Dec. 15, 2017 – Energy drinks should be banned from sale to under-16s, urged campaign group Action on Sugar. They played a “huge” role in children’s sugar intake, which is linked to obesity, and even some types of cancers, claimed the group’s Chairman. The claims came after an Action on Sugar report revealed 78 per cent of energy drinks exceeded the maximum daily sugar recommendation for children, aged between seven and 10. CONTINUED @ Express.co.uk 

Doesn’t Seem Right –  Dec. 15, 2017 – Arapahoe House announced Friday that its last day at all of its locations will be Jan. 2. As of Friday, it will no longer accept new patients. It currently serves 5,000 people a year, all of whom will have to find a new treatment provider. “It’s horrible,” Arapahoe House CEO Mike Butler said in an interview. “We’ve been struggling with being underfunded for many, many years. We’ve been losing a fair amount of money for many years.” CONTINUED @ DenverPost.com 

Service with a SOBER Smile – Dec. 15, 2017 – Brenda is the founder of “The Addict’s Parents United,” a group that supports parents dealing with children battling addiction. “It’s a way to give back to others that are less fortunate,” said Stewart. “I also do this to honor the lives that are lost through addiction.” CONTINUED @ ABC6.com

Super Bowl Pills –  Dec. 15, 2017 – Taking first step to recovery was most difficult task of his life … Grimes said he started using opioids midway through his career as a center with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 1980s and early 1990s. He needed it to ease the pain to play … He said he suffered 20 concussions during his career. He recalls one that occurred at the Pontiac Silverdome when he walked to the Lions sidelines instead of the Bucs’ sideline. CONTINUED @ PressAndGuide.com

Too BIG to Prosecute for MURDER –  DEC. 17, 2017 – Pharmacist Jeffrey Clawson was selling as many as 2,000 pain pills per day … “This is the best case we’ve ever had against a major distributor in the history of the Drug Enforcement Administration,” said Schiller, who recently retired as assistant special agent in charge of DEA’s Denver field division after a 30-year career with the agency. “I said, ‘How do we not go after the number one organization?” But it didn’t work out that way … Instead, top attorneys at the DEA and the Justice Department struck a…

Final Exit –  DEC. 11, 2017 – A new, national study has alarming predictions for New Hampshire. The report draws a strong connection between substance abuse and suicide, and says the Granite State will have among the country’s highest suicide risks in the upcoming decade. CONTINUED @ NHPR.org 

Woman with a Mission –  Dec. 17, 2017 – To spread awareness on life’s modern moral issues, Elyria resident Amanda Joan Quimper created her own series and non-profit called, “Stripped Clean, Television with a Higher Purpose,” and hopes to reach the public on larger television networks. CONTINUED @ MorningJournal.com

Below it All –  Dec. 17, 2017 – “This is the beginning of your beautiful new life!” So began a contract for Above It All Treatment Center, a drug rehabilitation facility in Lake Arrowhead where, in February, Matthew Maniace signed himself in for detox … What Maniace might not have known when he signed the admission form is that Above It All is what California regulators call a “non-medical” facility, which means it is not staffed by doctors…Few know that detox typically happens in tract houses, or that the most stringent medical requirement might be the full-time presence of someone…

  The Final Eulogy – Mimi O’Donnell Reflects on our Loss Dec. 13, 2017 – His mantra was: We have it to give. And he did. Phil was endlessly generous with his time and energy and money, whether it involved something as serious as paying for a friend to go to rehab or just having coffee with an intern, meeting a writer struggling with a play at midnight, or showing up for a babysitter’s non-Equity showcase. Vogue.com

Ben’s Struggle is Epic, Like so Many of Us –  Dec. 15, 2017 – The 45-year-old actor who was photographed outside an L.A. area treatment center on Thursday has been open in the past about his long struggle with alcohol abuse. The actor first checked himself into rehab shortly before his 29th birthday in August of 2001. He received treatment at the popular Malibu alcohol rehabilitation center… CONTINUED @ People.com

What 13th Amendment –  Dec. 4, 2017 – But Landrith also is involved in a more sinister byproduct of criminal justice reform … It’s the latest discovery in an ongoing investigation by Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting into rehab programs across the country that promise defendants freedom from addiction but instead turn them into indentured servants for private industry. CONTINUED @ RevealNews.org

The Normal Heart –  Dec. 11, 2017 – After an excruciating eight-year battle with alcohol, I went to rehab. My rehab was a small place, and to my knowledge I was the only out gay man there. My sexuality and its relationship to my alcoholism were overlooked by my counsellors. One exception was when weekly men’s and women’s groups were established. CONTINUED @ TheGuardian.com

Real Live Testimony –  December 12, 2017 – The Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will hold a hearing on Tuesday, December 12, 2017, at 10:15 a.m. in 2322 Rayburn House Office Building. The hearing is entitled “Examining Concerns of Patient Brokering and Addiction Treatment Fraud.”  CONTINUED @ EnergyCommerce.House.gov

Education for Body and Mind –  Oct. 30, 2017 –  Seven students from colleges in the Philadelphia area — including the University of Pennsylvania, Temple and Villanova — live, eat and socialize here, where they can abstain without temptation. CONTINUED @ NYTimes.com 

Temptations Strengthen Resolve –  Dec. 8, 2017 – Each night, after closing time at the Manhattan restaurant where Michael McGarry works, his colleagues wind down with whiskey sours and pale ales. Mr. McGarry takes a different drink, usually an espresso or a sparkling water … Being around alcohol is unavoidable, Mr. McGarry said, and so he believes it is critical for him to confront that head-on. If he sees alcohol as taboo, he said, he gives it more power. Having seen friends relapse, go to jail or die of a drug overdose, he knows what he risks if he does…

Jail House Overdose –  Dec. 7, 2017 – Miami-Dade homicide bureau will investigate, as they do with all deaths at jails. Investigators will also focus on who smuggled the illegal drugs into the jail. CONTINUED @ MiamiHerald.com

SAYS WHO? –  Dec. 8, 2017 – Last year, a pharmaceutical company called Insys Therapeutics gave half a million dollars to the campaign to stop marijuana legalization in Arizona. CONTINUED @ RollingStone.com 

Follow the Money –  March 6, 2017 – the Boston Globe has revealed that Advocates for Opioid Recovery, a new advocacy group which includes as paid spokespeople former congressmen Newt Gingrich and Patrick Kennedy, is being secretly backed by a drug company that is pushing for more government funding and insurance coverage of the kinds of treatments that company produces … Braeburn disclosed a $900,000 charitable pledge to Advocates for Opioid Recovery, making the donation through the private equity fund that owns Braeburn. That same fund invests in CleanSlate Addiction Treatment Centers, where Kennedy is a board member. CONTINUED @…