The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) is warning residents of an increase in the presence of the animal tranquilizer, xylazine, added to opioid street drugs like heroin and fentanyl. Xylazine-positive overdose deaths doubled in the Northeast between 2020 and 2021 . It is a non-opioid sedative used inContinue Reading
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in July that drug overdose deaths rose by 30 percent across the country in 2020, setting a new national record. Of the more than 93,000 drug overdose deaths in the U.S., nearly 7,600 came from Florida, according to provisional data released by theContinue Reading
The unintended consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic mitigation efforts, like closing businesses, stay-at-home order and other forms of lockdowns, made by governments and public health officials are mounting. Earlier this week, new research by public health experts at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) demonstrated thatContinue Reading
U.S. District Judge Charlene Edwards Honeywell has sentenced Antonie Latimore (36, Winter Haven) to 10 years and 10 months years in federal prison for conspiring to distribute cocaine base. Latimore had pleaded guilty on March 6, 2020. According to court documents, the FBI received information that Latimore, spelled in someContinue Reading
Four Florida men were charged in an indictment unsealed Thursday for their alleged participation in a compound pharmacy kickback scheme. Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez of the Middle District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Cyndy Bruce ofContinue Reading
This week, the Florida Department of Health (DOH) announced the allocation of $6.6 million from the Overdose Data to Action (OD2A) Grant to 14 Counties to assist local communities in the fight against all-drug overdose and opioid abuse. The Department’s receipt of the $58.8 million OD2A grant was first announced on OctoberContinue Reading
The U.S. Department of Labor Friday announced the award of an opioid-crisis Dislocated Worker Grant (DWG) to the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity for up to $2,500,000, with $833,333 released initially. This grant funding will address the workforce impacts of the opioid crisis by providing employment services to eligible individualsContinue Reading
