Free Republic

Our View: Opiate abuse epidemic is a national nightmare Beyond sharing the status of commonwealth, Massachusetts and Kentucky don't seem to have too much in common. But the commonwealths share a dubious bond that has only recently come out of the shadows: Both are epicenters of the opiate addiction epidemic sweeping the nation. Now Massachusetts and Kentucky are collaborating in efforts to fight back. Beyond sharing the status of commonwealth, Massachusetts and Kentucky don’t seem to have too much in common. But the commonwealths share a dubious bond that has only recently come out of the shadows: Both are epicenters...

State and federal lawmakers are working ...painkiller Zohydro ER permanently shelved, even as the head of the Food and Drug Administration defends the agency’s decision to approve the powerful opiate some critics call “heroin in a capsule.” Since its approval in Oct.... has come under scrutiny from members of Congress, state attorneys general, doctors and addiction specialists who have worked to block the pill from being sold in the U.S. FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg strongly defends the agency’s approval, arguing that Zohydro’s benefits outweigh the negative consequences. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., say the agency should rescind its approval of the...

(KMOV.com) — A new prescription painkiller has ER doctors concerned about the risk of spikes in overdoses and deaths. Zohydro is 10 times stronger than Vicodin and could be potentially deadly. The potent extended release prescription painkiller is made of pure hydrocodone. Doctors fear it’ll fall into the wrong hands when it’s released later this month. Dr. Jim keany st. Joseph’s hospital