A bill approved by the House and Senate would create a board of trustees to oversee the state's tobacco settlement money, while also broadening the trust's mission from tobacco prevention to public health.
Twenty years after Purdue Pharma introduced its pain medication, OxyContin, Maine lawmakers passed a bill that significantly stemmed the flow of pain pills into the state. A Sun Journal investigation found the new restrictions may have been too little, too late: A generation of Mainers were already grappling with substance use disorder and a growing illicit drug trade was ready to meet the demand.