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Drug deaths now 'a public health emergency'
But Switzerland offers glimpse of what could be
The Huffington Post (UK)
Saturday, October 22, 2016
“The lessons of a failing national policy need to be learnt,” is the conclusion experts drew about the surge in drug deaths. Deaths from heroin more than doubled to 1,201 in 2015 - the highest since 1993. A British Medical Journal (BMJ) editorial said part of the reason was “massive changes in national policy” since 2010, when the national drugs strategy moved the emphasis from harm reduction to drugs abstinence. This change created the incentive for drugs services to get people off treatment when they are not ready, the BMJ article says. Switzerland saved lives when it began its radical experiment with giving heroin addicts a place to inject it under supervision. -
Inside big pharma's fight to block recreational marijuana
Pharma and alcohol companies have been quietly bankrolling the opposition to legal marijuana, raising questions about threats to market share
The Guardian (UK)
Saturday, October 22, 2016
In August, the pharmaceutical company Insys Therapeutics cited concerns for child safety when, with a $500,000 contribution, it became the largest donor to Arizona’s anti-legalization drive. But their stated concerns have raised a few eyebrows across the state. Insys manufactures Subsys, a prescription painkiller derived from fentanyl, the synthetic opioid that is up to 100 times more powerful than morphine. Critics say the Insys contribution in Arizona is a ploy to protect market share, mirroring other large donations to anti-marijuana campaigns by pharmaceutical and alcohol companies that fear the growing clout of legal marijuana. (See also: A maker of deadly painkillers is bankrolling the opposition to legal marijuana in Arizona) -
São Paulo’s drug policies are working – will the new mayor kill them?
67% of the programme’s beneficiaries surveyed claimed they had reduced crack use after joining De Braços Abertos
The Conversation (UK)
Friday, October 21, 2016
A harm-reduction approach, De Braços Abertos (“With Open Arms”), to homeless crack use in São Paulo’s city centre hangs in the balance. For over two decades, downtown São Paulo has struggled with an area of open drug consumption, known as Cracolândia (“Crackland”). City officials have made many attempts to tackle this situation with law enforcement. The innovative De Braços Abertos emphasises not police monitoring or abstinence from drugs, but social care. The new mayor João Doria made closing down the succesful programme a campaign promise, calling it “open arms to death”. (See also: Sao Paulo strategy to help drug addicts in Cracolandia) -
Why is support for marijuana legalization hitting record heights?
As many as 60 percent of American adults are in favor of marijuana legalization, according to new polls
The Christian Science Monitor (US)
Friday, October 21, 2016
A record number of American citizens support marijuana legalization, according to two new national polls, in a continuation of multi-year trend. Sixty percent of those polled by Gallup this month supported legalization, similar to the 57 percent polled earlier this fall by the Pew Research Center. This November, five more states will put the question of legalization before voters. "Young people under 35 have shifted the most over the last 10 years or more. That’s important," Frank Newport, the editor in chief of Gallup. -
How our tax dollars are used to fund opposition to marijuana legalization, in a clear violation of ethics
The links between SAM and the federally funded HIDTA groups
The Influence (US)
Wednesday, October 19, 2016
This year the pharmaceutical, alcohol and prison food industries have all weighed in to oppose marijuana legalization initiatives across the country. This comes as little surprise: These industries all have financial interests in keeping marijuana illegal. By funding anti-legalization efforts, they’re simply admitting it. What surprises me is that the public is still largely unaware of how government resources – at federal, state and local levels – are used in the same fashion, in a blatant conflict of interests. (See also: Five biggest lies from anti-pot propagandist Kevin Sabet) -
These British police forces have stopped arresting drug users
The schemes have so far been successful in engaging certain drug users, reducing re-offending and keeping people out of the costly justice system
Vice (UK)
Wednesday, October 19, 2016
People caught carrying personal amounts of drugs, including cocaine and heroin, are being diverted away from the criminal justice system in what could mark the first step towards the decriminalisation of drugs in Britain. In a move that appears to fly in the face of the Home Office's official anti-drug reform mantra, both Durham and Avon & Somerset Police forces have for several months been operating "diversion" schemes which have resulted in scores of drug users avoiding court, jail and a criminal record. -
Medical marijuana and the green rush are changing Chile
70 percent of the population agrees with the use of medical marijuana, and 51 percent is in favor of legalizing it
Merryjane (US)
Tuesday, October 18, 2016
In Santiago alone, there are more than 500 grow shops. This explosive expansion that has occurred since 2010 has exceeded all projections. The marijuana community simply overwhelmed the authorities. What once was considered perhaps a trend it is now here to stay. In this short period of time, the cannabis market has nestled deep within the Chilean consumer – a fact that raised concerns among traditional congressmen and society. None of that could stop what was about to happen. -
What’s next for kratom after the DEA blinks on its emergency ban?
Public pressure keeps the herbal supplement unregulated for now, encouraging users and researchers seeking a safer alternative to opioids
The Scientific American (US)
Monday, October 17, 2016
Researchers and users of kratom were stunned by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s abrupt withdrawal of its stated plan to place the Southeast Asian plant under an emergency ban in the United States. One reason for the famously tough federal agency’s unusual move was “a large volume of phone calls from the American public” as well as messages from the scientific community and letters from members of Congress, says DEA spokesperson Russ Baer. Restrictions would have heavily encumbered research efforts. (See also: Regulate quality, dosage and purity of Kratom) -
Police arrest more people for marijuana use than for all violent crimes — combined
Drug-possession arrests skyrocketed from fewer than 200 arrests for every 100,000 people in 1979 to more than 500 in the mid-2000s
The Washington Post (US)
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
On any given day in the United States, at least 137,000 people sit behind bars on simple drug-possession charges, according to a report released by the American Civil Liberties Union and Human Rights Watch. Nearly two-thirds of them are in local jails. The report says that most of these jailed inmates have not been convicted of any crime: They're sitting in a cell, awaiting a day in court, an appearance that may be months or even years off, because they can't afford to post bail. -
The DEA is withdrawing a proposal to ban another plant after the Internet got really mad
U.S. lawmakers were among the groups expressing their displeasure with the DEA's intent to ban kratom
The Washington Post (US)
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
The Drug Enforcement Administration is reversing a widely criticized decision that would have banned the use of kratom, a plant that researchers say could help mitigate the effects of the opioid epidemic. Citing the public outcry and a need to obtain more research, the DEA is withdrawing its notice of intent to ban the drug, according to a preliminary document that will be posted to the Federal Register. Since announcing their intent to ban kratom, the DEA received numerous comments from members of the public challenging the scheduling action.
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