A roundup of some of the most popular but completely untrue stories and visuals of the week. None of these are legit, even though they were shared widely on social media. The Associated Press checked them out. ___ Executive Order 9066 authorized Japanese detention during World War II, not gift cards for recent migrants CLAIM: … Read more
PORTLAND, Ore. — Kendra Sawyer spoke with her dad from the Deschutes County jail and told him she loved him. Six hours later, in the throes of opioid withdrawal, the 22-year-old took her own life. A year later, Sawyer’s father, Kent, is left wondering whether his daughter, troubled as she was, might still be alive … Read more
NEW YORK — Smoking has surpassed injecting as the most common way of taking drugs in U.S. overdose deaths, a new government study suggests. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention called its study published Thursday the largest to look at how Americans took the drugs that killed them. CDC officials decided to study the … Read more
A medication used to treat asthma can now be used to help people with food allergies avoid severe reactions, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Friday. Xolair, the brand name for the drug omalizumab, became the first medication approved to reduce allergic reactions caused by accidental exposure to food triggers. Patients as young as … Read more
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — A fiery debate over public health and personal rights gripped Puerto Rico this week, intensifying Wednesday when legislators clashed with medical experts. The debate began earlier this month after the administrator of Puerto Rico’s House of Representatives announced the mandatory use of face masks, following various COVID-19 cases reported in … Read more
For some people with COVID-19, antiviral pills that can be taken at home can lessen the chances of winding up in the hospital. But the pills have to be taken right away, so you must get tested, obtain a prescription and get the medication within five days of symptoms appearing. The medication is intended for … Read more
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration is allowing one of the nation’s largest wholesale drug distributors to stay in business, reversing an earlier order stripping the company of its licenses for its failure to properly monitor the shipment of tens of millions of addictive painkillers blamed for fueling the opioid crisis. As part of the settlement … Read more
NEW YORK — A new, higher-dose nasal spray for reversing opioid overdoses did not save more lives than the previous standard dose, but it did cause more vomiting and other side effects, researchers wrote in a study published Thursday. The 8-milligram naloxone spray — twice as potent as the highest dose previously available — was … Read more
For cancer patients, the harsh side effects of powerful drugs have long been the trade-off for living longer. Now, patients and doctors are questioning whether all that suffering is necessary. They’ve ignited a movement to radically change how new cancer drugs are tested, with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration urging drugmakers to do a … Read more
An advertising agency that helped develop marketing campaigns for OxyContin and other prescription painkillers and a drugmaker announced separate agreements Thursday worth a total of $500 million to avoid going to trial on claims that they bore some responsibility for the nation’s opioid crisis. Publicis Health, part of the Paris-based media conglomerate Publicis Groupe, agreed … Read more
