Bolt Mag - Facing a brutal toll of overdose deaths, Maryland has in recent years put in place safe-supply services to promote healthier drug use. People can obtain syringes and needles through programs where those are distributed, but only if they register with a state-sanctioned provider.  

The Daily Record - ANNAPOLIS — The mounting number of fentanyl-related overdose deaths has prompted Democratic lawmakers to propose legislation that would pilot creation of safe spaces for drug users to take illegal substances without legal consequences and with medical staff nearby. 

CBS News - As the U.S. continues to contend with an opioid epidemic that has led to surge in accidental deaths among teens — largely due to fentanyl — some teachers are now being educated on the use of Narcan, a drug that reverses opioid overdoses.

Philadelphia CNN - What drug users and people who work with them in Philadelphia talk about is the smell. The smell of rotting flesh from open infected wounds.

Drug Topics - The veterinary drug xylazine, a nonopioid sedative analgesic and muscle relaxant, has begun a staggering rise to fame in the Philadelphia open-air drug markets. Known as a drug of abuse in Puerto Rico since the early 2000s, where it is known as anesthesia de Caballo or horse anesthetic, xylazine has been associated with hypotension, central nervous system depression, respiratory depression, and bradycardia.

New York Times - Reneé Jones overdosed three times last year, once while looking after her grandchildren.

New York Times - A veterinary tranquilizer called xylazine is infiltrating street drugs, deepening addiction, baffling law enforcement and causing wounds so severe that some result in amputation.

Maryland Matters - In 2021, nearly eight Marylanders died each day from an overdose. In my city of Baltimore alone, our community lost more than 600 people last year — a stunningly tragic situation that demands action.

The Daily Beast - As the U.S. reckons with a deadly opioid crisis that has claimed nearly a million lives since 1999, researchers are hard at work looking for an alternative way to help treat pain.

Maryland Matters - Police officers are trained first responders who are prepared to save a life from overdose. But in our states, it can be risky and intimidating to call them for help. We regularly hear stories of police arriving to stop an overdose and intent on finding a felony – they illegally rifle through drawers, subject bystanders to strict questioning and dig through people’s belongings.

The New York Times - Alcohol-Related Deaths Spiked During the Pandemic, a Study Shows The deaths were up 25 percent in 2020 compared with 2019, amid heightened stress factors and delayed treatment, according to a new report.

Maryland Matters - Expansion of Good Samaritan Law Aims to Remove Fear of Seeking Help after an Overdose

NPR - The U.S. faces an unprecedented surge of drug deaths, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reporting another grim milestone this week.

Baltimore Sun - When state lawmakers return to Annapolis for a special legislative session next month, they’ll face a question that has vexed some of them: Should they decriminalize needles, syringes and other supplies used by people who use drugs?

The Real News Networkm - The Delta variant surge isn’t the only public health problem Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan seems to fundamentally misunderstand—there’s also the overdose crisis. This week, Hogan announced $6 million in grants to fund the Maryland Criminal Intelligence Network (MCIN) and the Heroin...

New York Times -

The Baltimore Sun -

The Baltimore Sun - Treat drug use as a health issue, not a criminal one: decriminalize paraphernalia.

Smerconish.com - The Correlation Between US Overdose Rates and the Border Crisis By Dr. Dan Morhaim (Smerconish)

Harvard School of Public Health - For people struggling with opioid use disorder, the COVID-19 pandemic has posed challenges at every turn.

Washington Post- Harm-reduction measures touch our lives every day: From childhood immunizations to coronavirus vaccinations, from seat belts to traffic signals, each of these measures is meant to prevent injury or premature death.

The Baltimore Sun -

Maryland Matters - Up to 40% of Marylanders have reported feeling anxious or depressed as a result of the pandemic, and state crisis hotlines are receiving a startling increase in calls from individuals at risk for suicide.

Maryland Matters - TELEHEALTH Flexibility needed Amidst Converging Mental Health, Addiction Crises

New York Times - Using Telemedicine to Treat Opioid Addiction Getting medication long meant seeing a licensed provider. Now a strategy for evading Covid-19 makes treatment available via the web.

Politico - Fatal Overdoses climbed to Record High in 2019, reversing historic progress

New York Times - Research shows Purdue Pharma focused its marketing in states with lighter prescription regulation, with deadly consequences.

Drug Policy Alliance - Report titled :Ending the Drug War, Shaping the Future

The Philadelphia Inquirer - South Philadelphia to become site of nation’s first supervised-injection facility

Baltimore Sun - With hundreds of kids orphaned by opioid crisis, this Maryland county has new outlook on trauma services Growing up in a Cecil County trailer park, Ray Lynn has been shaped by tragedy

Washington Post -“Death by delivery” laws often sweep up other users, not high-level dealers

The New York Times - The Latest Failure in the War on Drugs People who provide the drugs that lead to overdoses often need help, not prison.

CBS News - Drugmakers could be on the hook for $150 billion to settle opioid-related litigation following an Oklahoma judge's ruling this week against pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson. Yet even that massive potential liability represents a fraction of pharmaceutical company's annual profits, as well as the overall financial toll from opioids.

The New York Times - Seattle Has Figured Out How to End the War on Drugs     

The Baltimore Sun - The number of opioid-related drug poisoning deaths in Maryland for the first quarter of 2019 is lower than a year ago. Still, it’s the second highest in over a decade, and, mirroring 2018, we are losing on average 40 Marylanders per week.