The Big News

In this last Update of 2020, we wish you a happy remainder of the holiday season and a fantastic new year. Thank you once again for reading, sharing, contributing and passionately advocating for recovery. Thanks, also, to colleagues throughout the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation, who advocate every day for individuals, families and communities affected by addiction. Special gratitude to Samantha Moy-Gottfried, David Piluso, Daniel Johnson, Shari Nye, Elizabeth Drutschmann, Mindy Hansen, Cathy Hufford, Karen Olson and Laura Jendersee—whose efforts and expertise help make this Update possible.

Speaking of the holidays, our colleagues Heidi Wallace and Carrie Bates had a long, robust conversation about substance-related challenges during the holiday season on Straight Talk with Laural Porter, which aired over the weekend on Portland’s NBC affiliate KGW. It’s a great segment. Watch and share with others you know who may face challenges this time of year. Here, too, are some tips for protecting one’s recovery during the holidays.

Sticking with the holiday theme, a quick invitation to our Minnesota readers… please consider joining us at an exciting alcohol-free party we’re throwing in Minneapolis to ring in the new decade—Hazelden Betty Ford and Dissonance present Resolution 2020: A Zero Proof New Year’s Eve with HALEY, Lydia Liza and Moe Yaqub!

Now, on to other news …

Five months after Los Angeles Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs died in a hotel room with two opioids in his bloodstream, Major League Baseball and its players’ union announced a new drug policy that adds opioid and cocaine testing for major leaguers and no longer punishes marijuana use in the major or minor leagues.

If we want to prevent addiction, it starts with pediatricians. That’s according to research in our new Emerging Drug Trends report, which makes the case for routine substance use screenings for adolescents.

As Purdue Pharma buckles under a mountain of litigation and public protest in the United States, its foreign affiliate, Mundipharma, has expanded, using some of the same tactics to sell the addictive opioids that made its owners, the Sackler family, a fortune. That’s according to a new report by The Associated Press, which says Mundipharma is also pushing another strategy globally: dominate the overdose-antidote market with its Nyxoid-branded naloxone nasal spray, which is similar to Narcan in the U.S.

Mental Health for US is holding a forum in New Hampshire tonight to draw awareness in the presidential campaign to both mental health and addiction issues. Watch the livestream on Facebook.

The FDA is chastising Alkermes for “misbranding” Vivitrol, one of the medications used to treat opioid addiction, and underselling its risks. It is unfortunate to hear of this issue related to a medication we use regularly. We have seen Vivitrol contribute to good outcomes in our system, where it’s combined with evidence-based psychosocial therapies and peer support. We are aware of the risks—as we are with all medications—and always communicate them clearly to our patients who consider them. Those risks also need to be clear in direct-to-consumer marketing. We have found that people who self-select for the medication do best and, due to the concerns raised, we would not recommend people be coerced to take Vivitrol or any other medication. Our Professional Education Solutions team trains providers nationwide on all aspects of treating opioid use disorder, including the use of medications. Team leaders report that knowledge and understanding have improved greatly over the past couple of years, enabling physicians and patients to make better decisions around which medication to utilize for each individual person.

Finally, the U.S. Senate voted 72-18 to confirm Dr. Stephen Hahn as the new FDA commissioner, as the agency faces pressure to reduce teenage vaping and weighs competing interests on a long-delayed proposal to ban flavored e-cigarettes. Some have criticized Dr. Hahn for sidestepping questions on the vaping crisis during earlier confirmation hearings. Meanwhile, former FDA chief Dr. Scott Gottlieb, who left the post in April, continues to weigh in, saying last week that products from Juul, the vaping company with the largest market share of e-cigarettes, “should be pulled off the market entirely.”

This week’s featured media is the latest episode in our award-winning Let’s Talk Addiction & Recovery podcast series, with host William C. Moyers talking to Christopher Yadron, Ph.D., about today’s most-effective addiction treatment approaches, including: specific treatment modalities for opioid, alcohol and meth addiction, important mental health considerations, group therapy and long-term recovery support. Watch, listen or read.

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Treatment Industry Issues and Reforms

In the latest NAATP newsletter, Hazelden Betty Ford Senior VP John Driscoll, who serves as board chair for our trade association, writes about industry reform priorities. So, too, does NAATP CEO Marvin Ventrell. Learn more →

New Oregon Health Authority Behaivoral Health Director Steve Allen is tasked with reforming his state’s broken mental health and addiction treatment system.

A Philadelphia-area treatment center owner will spend 18 months in prison.

Cannabis

“Marijuana killed my soul + ruined by brain.” That stark statement was written by a young man who ultimately took his own life and whose story is among several told in a USA Today piece highlighting the realities of severe marijuana addiction and marijuana-induced psychosis. Learn more →

At least eight states have reported lung illnesses linked to legal THC cartridges. But unlike consumer products and some food, identifying information about the products and stores that sold them isn't available.

Advocates are warning all immigrants in Illinois — even those with legal status — to stay away from cannabis as dispensaries across the state prepare to dole out the drug.

Despite decades of research findings showing that marijuana use puts an individual at heightened risk for misuse of prescription opioids, heroin and other drugs, Minnesota added chronic pain to the list of ailments for which medical marijuana can be prescribed.

The Illinois governor signed what some perceive to be “employer-friendly” amendments to the state’s new recreational marijuana law.

The nation’s institutions of higher learning are taking an anti-pot stance, including on medical marijuana, and now some students are suing.

Opioids Since 2001, the U.S. has spent $9 billion on an array of programs to deter Afghanistan from supplying the world with heroin.

In dozens of interviews, however, key players in the campaign acknowledged that none of the measures have worked and that many have made things worse. Learn more →

Home Depot’s CEO says the opioid crisis may be fueling organized crime that he thinks is behind a surge in stolen goods and sinking profits. The comment ignited some backlash on Twitter. “Are we just blaming everything on the opioid crisis now? What a joke,” tweeted one doctor. Interestingly, six years ago in the film The Anonymous People, recovery advocate John Shinholser uttered a memorable comment about people with addiction stealing circular saws from Home Depot when they’re unable to access care right away. Director Greg Williams shared the clip on Facebook.

Take a look inside the first jail in Massachusetts approved to provide in-house methadone treatment and see the impact it’s having on people there who have opioid use disorder.   

New research findings describe how the opioid crisis varies from state to state and even within individual states.

Scientists who have studied the curious chemistry of the opioid tramadol use an array of adjectives to describe it: “unpredictable,” “messy,” “crazy.”

The world lost another artist too soon when up-and-coming rapper Juice WRLD died at 21. Though the official cause of death is unknown, the hip hop star had previously acknowledged struggles with addiction, and a federal agent administered Narcan prior to Juice WRLD’s death. His grieving mother spoke publicly about it late last week.

An analysis of the DEA’s records of shipments of OxyContin and other controlled substances between 2006 and 2012 brings to light, for the first time, the Philadelphia retailers buying the drug — and how much of it was likely being misused.

Alcohol Our colleague Dr. Kristen Schmidt and this writer contributed to a story about the so-called ‘sober curious’ movement.

Said Dr. Schmidt: “We now have a generation that, instead of wanting to experiment with drugs and alcohol, is really considering experimenting with wellness.” Learn more →

As our Dr. Joseph Lee helps explain, the story on teens and drinking is a mixed bag heading into 2020.

The PBS News Hour is among the latest media to look at why millennials are increasingly reevaluating their relationship with alcohol.

A new medicine study asks the question: Why do close to 20% of women drink during pregnancy despite the significant risk of harm to the baby?

According to a new study, people who struggle with their drinking also use more benzodiazepines than the rest of the popultion, and that’s a dangerous combination.

Could this be true: a company offering “hangover days” as a benefit?

Two-thirds of Irish 18-24 year olds report drinking as a coping mechanism.

Health Care Reform and Parity

Parity advocate and former Congressman Patrick Kennedy comments on the recent study showing that insurance coverage for mental health and substance use treatment is getting less fair, relative to other health benefits. Learn more →

New York will now require all private and public health insurance companies to fully cover costs related to quitting vaping.

The cost of private health insurance is out of control, compared to Medicare and Medicaid, the Kaiser Family Foundation's Drew Altman writes.

Roughly 4.7 million people who have no health insurance could get coverage next year without paying a dime for the monthly premium, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation analysis.

Advocate Spotlight A mom who lost her son to overdose now sends cards to other grieving parents to let them know they are not alone and should not be ashamed. MaryBeth Moore Zocco estimates she has sent 700 cards to other parents since she started the project in April. Learn More →

Congratulations to actor, comedian, podcaster and writer Russell Brand, who celebrated 17 years of recovery with a post on Facebook.

HALEY, who will headline our previously mentioned alcohol-free New Year’s Eve party in Minneapolis, talked about the event in an interview with 89.3 The Current.

From the Recovery Almanac: Legendary broadcaster Edward R. Murrow's CBS radio show "This I Believe" featured 5-min essays on the personal philosophies of influential Americans. This 1952 episode featuring recovery advocate Marty Mann also was one of 10 featured on a rare 1953 vinyl record.

Miscellaneous Musings Alabama is the latest state government to launch an anti-stigma campaign seeking to change the language we use when referring to people who have substance use disorders. Learn more →

• In a Q&A with USA Today, U.S. Drug Czar James Carroll talked about fentanyl, marijuana legalization and solving the addiction crisis. Watch or read.
• Florida First Lady Casey DeSantis has launched a new campaign to educate children about the dangers of substance use. Designed to go beyond the “Just Say No” efforts of the past, her campaign is entitled, “The Facts. Your Future.”
• The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation awarded a $13 million, five-year grant to the BARR Center, which produces an evidence-based school equity and prevention curriculum that we publish. Big congratulations to our partners!
• A Chicago woman who has been sober since 2014 could lose her green card due to a record of misdemeanors, mostly for shoplifting at the height of her addiction, that may come back to haunt her.
• The Recovery Gym in Portland got some national media attention.
• Given the vaping crisis, is it wise to let Big Tobacco unleash a new “safer cigarette?”
• Libraries are taking on new duties as resources for people who need mental health help – which makes sense to this writer, who remembers looking for addiction help at the library before seeking it out anywhere else.
• Here’s an interesting Q&A with William Schaberg, author of the new scholarly work, Writing the Big Book: The Creation of A.A.
• We’re hosting a sold-out event in St. Paul this Wednesday for firefighters, police officers, EMTs, counselors and others working in the crisis community. Speakers include St. Paul’s mayor and assistant fire chief along with advocate Tom Farley, brother to late actor and comedian Chris Farley, who uses comedy and improv to deliver messages of prevention and recovery. See: Fueling the Strong & the Brave: Responding to our Emergency Responders.
• Firefighters are a unique, vulnerable population at high risk for alcohol use disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder. Learn more in this new study.
• A construction company in Salt Lake City has become a model for helping workers who are struggling with suicidal ideation or self-harm, NPR reports.
• The U.S. Senate Finance Committee reached bipartisan agreement on an extension and significant expansion of the Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic pilot program. CCBHCs provide mental health and substance use disorder treatment services, and in return, receive enhanced Medicaid reimbursement rates. The new package—which still must be approved by the full Senate and House, and signed by the President—increases the number of eligible states from eight to 19 and gives the original eight states two years of additional funding.
• Substance use made its way into the impeachment hearings last week.
• An FCC proposal, which is now open to public comment, asks telecom companies to ensure within 18 months that users can dial 988 to reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.
• Take a look at the top 10 health questions America asked Google in 2019. One relates to alcohol.
• William White remains on a break from his blog… we invite you once again to dive into his three lectures on recovery-oriented systems of care (ROSC), delivered 10 years ago—well ahead of their time. We think lectures 1, 2 and 3 are must-sees for anyone working in addiction treatment and/or recovery.
• Thank you for reading. What do you think? Send us a note anytime, and have a great rest of the year!