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Eastern Kentucky towns fight to recover from opioid epidemic, with help from newcomers and recovering addicts, national author reports
BY SAM QUINONES REPUBLISHED BY KHN FROM THE FREE PRESS In early 2020, Mandi Fugate Sheffel, 42, opened a tiny bookstore in her hometown of Hazard. Everyone thought she was crazy. Downtown Hazard was a forbidding place to start any business, much less a bookstore. Most coal mines that once supported the area had closed.…
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Animal tranquilizer in fentanyl found in 48 states, including Kentucky
BY NADIA RAMLAGAN PUBLIC NEWS SERVICE Fentanyl in Kentucky may now be laced with an animal tranquilizer called Xylazine, what drug officials are calling the “third wave” of the opioid epidemic. According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, in the Commonwealth, Xylazine has so far shown up at DEA labs in the Florence/Covington area and in…
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Attorney General holds sixth Operation Fight Fentanyl event in Martin County
INEZ — Attorney General Daniel Cameron Thursday continued his commitment to fighting the opioid epidemic by holding an “Operation Fight Fentanyl” forum in Martin County. He was joined in Inez by a panel of law enforcement, prosecutor and community partners. This is the sixth Operation Fight Fentanyl event hosted by Attorney General Cameron. “Far too…
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Attorney General bringing ‘Operation Fight Fentanyl’ to Inez
BY ROGER SMITH MOUNTAIN CITIZEN INEZ — Attorney General Daniel Cameron will hold an “Operation Fight Fentanyl” forum in Inez. Operation Fight Fentanyl aims to combat the opioid crisis by hearing from residents directly impacted by illicit fentanyl. Cameron invites residents to join him April 13 from 1-3 p.m. at the Martin County Library. The…
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Bill to let advance-practice registered nurses prescribe controlled substances on their own passes Senate
BY MELISSA PATRICK KENTUCKY HEALTH NEWS After years of debate and months of negotiations, a bill to create a path for Kentucky’s advanced-practice registered nurses to prescribe controlled substances independently has passed the state Senate and gone to the House on a 30-2-1 vote. Senate Bill 94 was the result of a compromise brokered by…
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Rural Americans more aware of opioid problems
KENTUCKY HEALTH NEWS Poll of rural Americans finds them more aware of, and more willing to discuss, opioid problems; 47% still see stigma Rural Americans say they are more aware of, and more willing to talk about, the opioid problem in the nation and their communities than they were five years ago, according to an…
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Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission plans town-hall meetings around the state, starting in Pikeville Sept. 19
The state commission overseeing distribution of $478 million in opioid-settlement funds in Kentucky has scheduled a series of town-hall meetings to discuss drug addiction, treatment and recovery in the state. The Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission also announced at its Aug. 29 meeting that it plans to open an online application portal for addiction programs wanting…
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Do you use or prescribe meds for opioid-use disorder?
Researchers at UK would like to know what you think about it Primary-care providers who prescribe buprenorphine to treat opioid-use disorder, and people receiving treatment for the disorder, are invited to participate in studies led by researchers at the University of Kentucky and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Opioid treatment study for patients:…