opioid

The UT Health San Antonio School of Nursing and its community harm reduction partners distribute the state's supply of federally funded naloxone products such as Narcan for free.

A new policy request calls for using the city’s opioid settlement funds to also expand local harm reduction programs and drug addiction education efforts.

KFF Health News obtained documents showing the exact dollar amounts — down to the cent — that local governments have been paid in 2022 and 2023 in lawsuit settlements from the opioid crisis.

Advisers to the FDA put the opioid overdose-reversal drug a step closer to being sold without a needing a prescription. Even if approved, the medication may not reach many people who need it.

The 1,992 doses of Narcan were paid for out of a $2.2 million fund the county received as part of a settlement with opioid manufacturers and distributors.

Courtois added that destigmatizing opioid use disorder would be a major step in tackling the crisis.“It is a chronic disease, similar to high blood pressure [or] diabetes, however it is not seen in the same light,” she said. “And because there is so much stigma and bias, it compounds the challenge for individuals that are dealing with this to seek help because of fear of that very stigma.”

The money is part of a $26 billion agreement including several other states.

The country's biggest name-brand pharmacy chains face a high-profile civil trial beginning Monday in Cleveland, Ohio over their role in the nation's deadly opioid epidemic.

Martin Phipps has come under scrutiny as his former staff accuse him of making threats — most recently against a San Antonio Councilman.

The disruption in the illegal opioid trade had varying impacts around the country. As stay-at-home orders lift, that creates different risks of overdose that public health is trying to manage.