Latest News
On this page you will find the latest relevant updates on a broad range of health and policy related topics, including HIV, hepatitis C, drug use, overdose prevention, harm reduction, drug treatment and criminal justice.
Methadone is getting an image rehab as opioid crisis deepens
4 Jul 2017
A half-century into the “war on drugs,” with a new wave of opioid addiction at crisis proportions, some commercial health insurers are beginning to cover methadone maintenance, the oldest and best-researched treatment for addiction to heroin and prescription pain relievers.
4 Jul 2017
A half-century into the “war on drugs,” with a new wave of opioid addiction at crisis proportions, some commercial health insurers are beginning to cover methadone maintenance, the oldest and best-researched treatment for addiction to heroin and prescription pain relievers.
New opioid restrictions create greater drug crisis, doctors say
3 Jul 2017
Desperate for relief from unbearable pain following knee surgery, Lorna Bird says she was forced to buy drugs from the Downtown Eastside streets of Vancouver when her doctor stopped prescribing an opioid in response to new standards aimed at preventing fatal overdoses.
3 Jul 2017
Desperate for relief from unbearable pain following knee surgery, Lorna Bird says she was forced to buy drugs from the Downtown Eastside streets of Vancouver when her doctor stopped prescribing an opioid in response to new standards aimed at preventing fatal overdoses.
Why opioid deaths are this generation’s Aids crisis
29 Jun 2017
The soaring numbers of deaths from overdoses in the US and UK requires a radical and fast rethink of drugs policy.
29 Jun 2017
The soaring numbers of deaths from overdoses in the US and UK requires a radical and fast rethink of drugs policy.
Opioid epidemic is devastating women in Afghanistan
26 Jun 2017
A rising opium and heroin epidemic in Afghanistan has begun taking a toll on the country’s women, tens of thousands of whom are believed to be suffering from addiction inside their homes and outside of the public eye.
26 Jun 2017
A rising opium and heroin epidemic in Afghanistan has begun taking a toll on the country’s women, tens of thousands of whom are believed to be suffering from addiction inside their homes and outside of the public eye.
IDHDP gets ECOSOC status
22 Jun 2017
The UN has granted IDHDP Special consultative status with the Economic and Social Council.
22 Jun 2017
The UN has granted IDHDP Special consultative status with the Economic and Social Council.
Joint United Nations statement on ending discrimination in health care settings
15 Jun 2017
United Nations entities recall that a central principle of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is to “ensure that no one is left behind” and to “reach the furthest behind first”.
15 Jun 2017
United Nations entities recall that a central principle of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is to “ensure that no one is left behind” and to “reach the furthest behind first”.
We have waged war on drugs for a century. So who won?
31 May 2017
Extrajudicial killings in the Philippines show how prohibition has made a global problem far worse.
31 May 2017
Extrajudicial killings in the Philippines show how prohibition has made a global problem far worse.
Jane Philpott says pharmaceutical heroin a potential lifesaver in opioid epidemic
30 May 2017
'It works,' the health minister says. 'It gets people's lives back on track.'
30 May 2017
'It works,' the health minister says. 'It gets people's lives back on track.'
Seven countries have been effective in reducing overdose deaths - How?
29 May 2017
While other countries are succeeding in reducing the number of opioid overdose deaths, U.S. rates are rising.
29 May 2017
While other countries are succeeding in reducing the number of opioid overdose deaths, U.S. rates are rising.
Witness: A doctor’s struggle to bring relief to dying patients
28 May 2017
Guatemala’s red tape stops physicians from prescribing pain medication.
28 May 2017
Guatemala’s red tape stops physicians from prescribing pain medication.
