The State of Indiana wants to learn more about Hoosiers experiences with substance-use disorder and addiction-recovery services. Administered by the state s Division of Mental Health and Addiction (DMHA), the "Recovery Capital Index" will take a holistic look at the addiction-recovery resources available to people across the state, to help determine whether further resources are needed to ensure patients stay on the path to recovery. Becky Buhner, deputy director of addiction and forensic treatment for the DMHA, said the data will help policymakers craft targeted responses to addiction-recovery needs. .
Ohio s overdose crisis has been heavily linked to the use of prescription painkillers or heroin, but it is not the case anymore. Health officials now warn historic levels of overdose deaths are being exacerbated by the availability of counterfeit pills laced with fentanyl, a potent and deadly synthetic drug. Shabbir Imber Safdar, executive director of the Partnership for Safe Medicines, said fake pills are being sold as prescription painkillers such as OxyContin, the anxiety drug Xanax, and stimulant medications. .
Online sales of counterfeit prescription pills containing fentanyl are on the rise, and experts say social media apps like Snapchat and TikTok are driving the surge, including in Tennessee. Shabbir Safdar, executive director of the Partnership for Safe Medicines, said an alarming number of counterfeit prescription drug pills containing fentanyl are being bought online by teens and young adults. "And in fact, just in the last four years, we ve tracked fatalities in 19 different states from people who ve met a drug trafficker on Snapchat and then bought a fake pill," Safdar reported. " .