Crisis Looms for Crimea Opiate Addicts as Russia Bans Methadone

“Things are about to get harder for opiate users in Crimea, the former Ukrainian province now annexed by Russia. While Ukraine has embraced a harm reduction approach to hard drug use, Russia rejects such an approach and has some of the most repressive drug laws in the world.  On Wednesday, Russian ‘drug czar’ Viktor Ivanov — one of 31 allies of Pres. Vladimir Putin sanctioned by the US government this month — announced that Russia will ban the use of methadone in Crimea. That comes after vows a week before that he would move away from harm reduction practices in general in Crimea.”

http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2014/mar/26/crimea_opiate_maintenance_crisis

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Dallas Buyer’s Club Illustrates How Regulations Kill

“Back in the mid-1980s, AIDS patients lived less than two years after being diagnosed. Using drugs available overseas, some of which are still not marketed in the US, Woodroof beats the odds.  While Woodroof was fighting the FDA, I was working at a major pharmaceutical firm. By the time that the FDA gave us permission to test our drugs in people, every AIDS patient in the country who wanted them had already tried them. The Buyers Clubs either obtained them overseas or hired black market chemists to make them. Much valuable information about how these drugs worked—or didn’t work—could have been obtained from these Clubs if their operations hadn’t been in legal limbo.”

http://isil.org/dallas-buyers-club-illustrates-how-regulations-kill/

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Man can’t donate organs before execution, due to needing to recover

“An Ohio death-row inmate can’t donate his organs to a family member because he wouldn’t have enough time to recover from the operation before his execution, a state prison official said Friday.  Gov. John Kasich postponed Ronald Phillips’ execution from last November to this July to see whether he would be a viable organ donor to his mother, who has kidney disease. His sister, who suffers from heart disease, was also initially mentioned as a possible recipient.  Kasich spokesman Rob Nichols said the governor won’t further postpone Phillips’ execution. Nichols declined to comment further.”

http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2014/03/convicted_killer_ronald_philli.html

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Police Confront Rising Number of Mentally Ill Suspects

“Police officers find themselves playing dual roles as law enforcers and psychiatric social workers. The problem has gotten worse in recent years, according to mental health and criminal justice experts, as state and local governments have cut back on mental health services for financial reasons. People with mental illness are often arrested in connection with minor crimes like disorderly conduct or trespassing. Mr. Boyd, whom the Albuquerque police said had a history of violence and who appeared to be turning away from the officers when he was shot, attracted law enforcement attention for camping illegally.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/02/us/police-shootings-of-mentally-ill-suspects-are-on-the-upswing.html?partner=MYWAY&ei=5065&_r=1

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Obamacare Consequence Will Leave Many Americans Out of Luck

“Americans thinking about buying health insurance on their own later this year, or maybe switching to a different insurer, are probably out of luck.  With limited exceptions, insurance companies have stopped selling until next year the sorts of individual plans that used to be available year-round. That locks out many of the young and healthy as well as the sick and injured, even those who can afford to buy without government subsidies.  The law, which requires nearly all Americans to be insured or pay a fine, bans insurers from rejecting customers because of poor health. The companies say that makes it too risky to sell to individuals year-round.”

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/04/04/the-little-noticed-consequence-of-obamacare-that-will-leave-many-americans-out-of-luck/

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Massachusetts Snatches Child Over Psychiatric Treatment Disagreement

“The Boston Globe reported that Suffolk County juvenile court Judge Joseph Johnston granted ‘permanent’ custody to the state DCF.  Justina was diagnosed with mitochondrial disease several years ago at Tufts Medical Center and put on a treatment plan to alleviate some of her symptoms. When her parents took her to Boston Children’s Hospital last year for complications with the flu, doctors there said she had somatoform disorder, a psychiatric disorder, instead.  After the Pelletiers disagreed with Boston Children’s treatment plan and tried to take her back to Tufts, they were accused of medical child abuse. DCF took custody of the teen on Feb. 13, 2013.”

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/03/25/judge-gives-permanent-custody-of-justina-pelletier-to-state-agency/

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Aborted babies incinerated to heat UK hospitals

“The bodies of thousands of aborted and miscarried babies were incinerated as clinical waste, with some even used to heat hospitals, an investigation has found. Ten NHS trusts have admitted burning foetal remains alongside other rubbish while two others used the bodies in ‘waste-to-energy’ plants which generate power for heat.  Last night the Department of Health issued an instant ban on the practice which health minister Dr Dan Poulter branded ‘totally unacceptable.’  At least 15,500 foetal remains were incinerated by 27 NHS trusts over the last two years alone. Parents who lose children in early pregnancy were often treated without compassion and were not consulted about the remains.”

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/10717566/Aborted-babies-incinerated-to-heat-UK-hospitals.html

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Canola Oil: Good or Bad?

“Back in the day, an oil called rapeseed oil was often used for industrial purposes.  It was cheap to produce, but people couldn’t eat it because it contained some unfavorable substances.  A bunch of Canadian scientists wanted to turn rapeseed oil into an edible oil, so they used selective breeding techniques to ‘create’ seeds that contained less of these harmful, bitter substances.  This is how canola was born… but ‘Canola’ is a marketing term. It stands for Canadian Oil (some believe it stands for Canada Oil, Low Acid).  Today, about 90% of the world’s canola crop is genetically modified.  This short video shows how canola oil is made. I recommend you watch it.”

http://authoritynutrition.com/canola-oil-good-or-bad/

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28 attorneys-general pressure retailers to end tobacco sales

“Twenty-eight attorneys general from 24 states, three U.S. territories and Washington, D.C. are pressuring five retailers, including Walgreen Co. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc., to follow the move by CVS Caremark Corp. and end sales of tobacco.  Health advocates cheered the move and said it would probably spur other retailers to do the same.  In 2011, just 19% of adults smoked, down from 42% in 1965.  But public health advocates have grown concerned that progress has stalled in recent years.  Public health advocates hope that reducing the number of stores where tobacco products can be sold and advertised will help push smoking rates down even further.”

http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-attorney-generals-tobacco-20140317,0,37972.story

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Random Drug Testing for All? Chilling Proposal Could Eradicate Privacy

“The practice of random drug testing has become popularized in both the workplace and in public schools. But according to a recently released paper by the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM), the controversial practice is, at present, ‘underutilized’ and ought to be expanded to include people of all ages in virtually all aspects of daily life.  ASAM’s paper calls for the expanded use of random drug screening among patients undergoing palliative care as well as those seeking emergency medical treatment, psychiatric treatment or obstetric care.  Adolescent patients, as well as geriatric patients also ought to be targeted for increased drug test monitoring.”

http://www.alternet.org/civil-liberties/random-drug-testing-all-chilling-proposal-key-addiction-journal-major-invasion?paging=off

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