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Though overdose deaths continue to surge, there is no approved medication to treat methamphetamine use disorder.

Now, an experimental two-drug therapy has yielded promising results, UCLA researchers report.

"These findings have important implications for pharmacological treatment for methamphetamine use disorder," said researcher Dr....

The relentless rise in deaths from drug overdose in the United States may finally have stalled: New data from 2023 show the first decline in such deaths since 2018.

"Statistics indicate there were an estimated 107,543 drug overdose deaths in the United States during 2023 -- a decrease of 3% from the 111,029 deaths estimated in 2022," CDC statisticians wrote.

They released the new nu...

The Biden administration is encouraging schools throughout the United States to carry naloxone to help prevent fatal drug overdoses in students.

The medication (Narcan) was approved earlier this year as an over-the-counter (OTC) nasal spray.

Faculty and students sho...

A conversation with a family member or loved one struggling with addiction can be the catalyst for getting help.

But it's important to choose your words carefully when discussing possible addiction to controlled substances with your loved one, said Dr. Aleksandra Zgierska, a profess...

A bankruptcy deal that would have shielded the family behind the company that makes Oxycontin from civil lawsuits was temporarily blocked by the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday.

President Joe Biden had asked for a delay in approval of the nationwide settlement, which had been...

The United States is in the middle of an opioid crisis, yet new research shows that only about 7% of Americans on Medicaid who have opioid use disorder receive residential treatment.

This means that many people who could potentially benefit from what is more commonly known as "rehab" aren't getting the care they need to help them with their addiction.

"We know residential care is i...

Breakthrough research shows genetic markers for substance abuse and could lead to more effective ways to prevent and treat drug and alcohol use disorders.

These findings could help people who face addiction to varied substances, including those who have more than one addiction at a time.

The findings al...

Contrary to concerns, wider availability of naloxone treatment is not increasing heroin use among U.S. teens, new research finds.

Naloxone (Narcan) quickly reverses an overdose from opioids like heroin, fentanyl, morphine and oxycodone (OxyContin). There had been some worry that expanding access to naloxone might inadvertently promote high-risk substance use among young people. However, t...

To fight an urgent opioid overdose crisis, a Canadian province took an unusual step on Tuesday.

British Columbia decriminalized small amounts of several hard drugs.

This includes up to 2.5 grams of cocaine, heroin and fentanyl, the province's Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions said in a statement

Giving more patients at-home access to the opioid addiction treatment drug methadone during the COVID pandemic did not lead to more overdose deaths, a nationwide study shows.

The research, which covered the period from January 2019 to August 2021, found that the push to let more patients take home doses rather than visit a clinic daily did not increase harm among users.

"Treatment ...

A potentially lifesaving drug that reduces overdose risk is prescribed to less than half of Americans treated for opioid addiction, a new study finds.

This underuse of buprenorphine is "equivalent to giving those with advanced cancer a less aggressive ...

No magic bullet exists for ending the U.S. opioid crisis, but there's hopeful news for one high-risk population: Providing addiction medication in jails reduces the odds of addicts being re-arrested after their release, new research shows.

"Studies like this provide much-needed evidence and momentum for jails and prisons to better enable the treatment, education and support systems that i...

A program meant to encourage the use of a drug that can help people overcome opioid addiction led to dramatic increases in its use in emergency rooms, researchers report.

Buprenorphine is a medication that stabilizes opioid withdrawal and soothes cravi...

At least 59 overdoses were prevented in the first three weeks that two overdose prevention centers have been open in New York City, the city's health department said Tuesday.

During that time, there were more than 2,000 visits to the centers that are operated by OnPoint NYC and are the first publicly recognized overdose prevention sites to open in the United States. The city first

A wearable device that could inject a lifesaving antidote for an opioid overdose might be on the horizon.

A new study shows that the device, worn on the stomach like an insulin pump, can detect when someone stops breathing from an overdose and inject the drug naloxone to restore breathing.

"Fatal drug overdoses in the United States are at an all-time high, and opioid overdoses accou...

New government data confirms what many have suspected: The pandemic has prompted a record number of drug overdose deaths, with more than 100,000 Americans succumbing to addiction as COVID-19 raged across the country.

That figure is almost 30% higher than the previous year, when 78,000 overdose deaths were reported, according to provisional figures from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control...

A previous court ruling that ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay Oklahoma $465 million for the company's role in the opioid epidemic was tossed out by the state's highest court on Tuesday.

In a 5-1 vote, the Oklahoma Supreme Court rejected the state's argument that Johnson & Johnson violated "public nuisance" laws by overstating the benefits of its prescription opioid painkillers and minimiz...

A California judge has ruled against local governments that sued drug companies for billions of dollars to recover their costs of dealing with the opioid epidemic.

In a tentative ruling issued Monday, Orange County Superior Court Judge Peter Wilson rejected the plaintiffs' claims the companies used deceptive marketing to increase unnecessary prescriptions of opioid painkillers, the As...