Opioid Misuse and Overdose Prevention
Opioids, both prescription painkillers and illegal drugs such as heroin and illicitly manufactured fentanyl, are responsible for most of the 52,000 deaths of Americans every year from overdose. States and localities have implemented a number of legal and regulatory interventions to address this epidemic.
Resources
Harm Reduction Laws in Idaho
Characteristics of Statewide Naloxone Distribution Mechanisms
Increased Access to Medications for Opioid Use Disorder during the COVID-19 Epidemic and Beyond
Legality of Dispensing and Administering Expired Naloxone in Georgia
Legality of Dispensing and Administering Expired Naloxone in the District of Columbia
Legality of Dispensing and Administering Expired Naloxone in Colorado
Legality of Dispensing and Administering Expired Naloxone in Illinois
Legality of Dispensing Naloxone to Minors in Pennsylvania
Legality of Dispensing Naloxone to Minors in Maryland
Harm Reduction Policy in Practice
Linking and De-identifying State-level Data Sets to Tackle the Opioid Epidemic
Legal Interventions to Reduce Overdose Mortality: Naloxone Access and Good Samaritan laws
Naloxone Access and Overdose Good Samaritan Law in Ohio
Indian Health Service and Military Medical Prescription Drug Monitoring Program Requirements
Litigation Against Opioid Manufacturers: Lessons from the Tobacco Wars
Legal Interventions to Increase Access to Naloxone in Indiana
Overdose Reporting Requirements
Legal Interventions to Increase Access to Naloxone in Colorado
South Carolina Overdose Prevention Legislation
Drug Overdose Prevention in Pennsylvania
Explore more sub-topics related to Substance Use Prevention and Harm Reduction
Spotlight
Overdose “Good Samaritan” Laws Should Protect, Not Punish
Federal Restrictions on Funding for Syringe Services Programs
Select Jurisdictional Examples of Expanded Naloxone Access
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Opioid Misuse and Overdose
Opioids
The United States remains in the grip of an unprecedented epidemic of drug-related harm. In 2017, over 70,000 Americans were killed by drug overdose, surpassing the number lost at the height of the HIV/AIDS crisis. Opioids, both prescription painkillers and illegal drugs such as heroin and illicitly manufactured fentanyl, are responsible for most of these deaths.
States and localities have implemented a number of legal and regulatory interventions to address this epidemic. These include the creation and strengthening of prescription monitoring programs (PMPs), drug take-back programs and initiatives to increase access to naloxone, a medication that effectively reverses opioid overdose. States are also taking measures to increase access to evidence-based substance use disorder treatment, improve prescriber training, and evaluate whether existing programs are having the desired effect.
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