David Ovalle

The parents of fentanyl victims have long been united by their grief and desire to stem the drug crisis that has killed more than 100,000 people each year for the past three years across red and blue states. But as candidates sprint to a Nov. 5 finish, bereaved parents disagree on which party will curb the epidemic and have emerged as powerful voices on the campaign trail.

Parents of fentanyl victims united by grief, divided by politics Parents of fentanyl victims are divided on whether Donald Trump or Kamala Harris can effectively curb the epidemic and have emerged as powerful voices on the campaign trail.

Tusi, or pink co***ne, has been tied to Diddy and death of Liam Payne. In Miami, it's been linked to a string of deaths, including the case of a man who became so paranoid and agitated that he leaped off a hotel balcony

It’s hot pink and smells sweet. But the party drug tusi can prove deadly. The drug is also called pink co***ne although it typically contains no co***ne. Instead, market-savvy drug dealers concoct the powders from a number of substances.

They die alone in bedrooms, bathroom stalls and cars. Each year in the United States, tens of thousands of fatal overdoses unfold as tragedies of solitude — with no one close enough to call 911 or deliver a lifesaving antidote.

Technology new and old might save some of those lives.

Fatal overdoses often happen when users are alone. Hotlines, sensors can save lives. Even as officials hope tech can stem the tide of solitary drug fatalities, they know deploying these warning strategies could face obstacles.

While the drill is not new for Florida’s health-care workers, the back-to-back storms is unusual, illustrating the challenge of striking a balance between professional duties and personal lives strained by storm trauma and the loss of homes.

Florida health-care workers exhausted as Hurricane Milton approaches “It gets stressful. You don’t know if you’re going to come back to a home,” a Florida paramedic says.

A Post investigation found that many defendants were unaware of the technology’s role in linking them to crimes, leading to questions of fairness. w/ Doug MacMillan

Police seldom disclose use of facial recognition despite false arrests A Post investigation found that many defendants were unaware of the technology’s role in linking them to crimes, leading to questions of fairness.

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has expressed support for loosening federal restrictions on ma*****na, aligning himself with the Biden administration’s ongoing efforts to do exactly that.

Trump signals support for Biden plan to loosen ma*****na restrictions The former president suggests he wants to see ma*****na reclassified as a Schedule III drug, the first time Trump has endorsed the easing of federal restrictions.

Mindstate CEO Dillan DiNardo calls moxy “the tofu of psychedelics” because in clinical doses, it has a more muted effect on users than mind-benders such as L*D.

Analysis | FDA gives an early nod to psychedelic research The Washington Post’s essential guide to health policy news.

Though ma*****na and h**p are both varieties of the cannabis plant, Florida officials police each differently. Ma*****na is allowed only for medicinal purposes, while h**p is widely permitted. The result is a booming market for intoxicating h**p products, some of which public health experts warn are dangerous.

DeSantis in middle of Florida feud pitting ma*****na against h**p Voters in Florida will soon decide whether to legalize recreational ma*****na. DeSantis is against it and getting support from an unlikely ally: the h**p industry.

Officials are amplifying warnings about the risks of unregulated and sometimes illegal products advertised on social media and sold online or in v**e shops.

Psychedelic mushroom edibles promise health benefits. Be wary, experts say.

The agency’s move involving one of the industry’s leading players comes as the Supreme Court is scheduled on June 20 to privately discuss for the first time whether to weigh in on conflicting lower-court decisions involving FDA regulation of e-cigarette products for other companies.

FDA reverses ban on Juul products as Supreme Court may weigh in on v**es Juul had appealed the Food and Drug Administration’s initial June 2022 decision to banish its e-cigarette products.

The review comes ahead of an FDA advisory committee meeting, scheduled for June 4, which will consider whether Lykos’s data show M**A-assisted therapy is effective in treating PTSD.

Ecstasy’s path to approval for PTSD treatment faces doubts from FDA staff A preliminary review by FDA raised questions about the data supporting M**A-assisted therapy, which is aiming to become the first psychedelic treatment to win agency approval.

The law is part of broader resistance in communities where critics assert that distributing “safer smoking” supplies encourages substance abuse and could make fentanyl more appealing to new users.

Fentanyl users get free smoking gear in some cities. Now there’s pushback. In some regions, more drug users are smoking, rather than injecting, opioids. But communities are pushing back on handouts of “safe smoking” supplies.

The Food and Drug Administration this week moved to expand screening for potentially lethal cervical cancer by allowing women to collect test samples themselves, a move that reproductive health advocates view as crucial to stamping out the preventable disease.

FDA approves self-collection screening for virus that causes cervical cancer Women’s health advocates view the move as crucial to stamping out the preventable disease.

The agency described it as the first annual decrease in deaths since 2018, although experts cautioned that the numbers could rise in ensuing years and that the toll remains unacceptably high.

In grim milestone, U.S. overdose deaths top 100,000 for third straight year Provisional data from 2023 suggested a slight decrease from the year before, although final numbers are pending.

Now, researchers are studying whether ultrasound can be deployed against an especially implacable foe: addiction to opioids and other substances.

Ultrasound technology is used in many ways. Addiction is the next frontier. The use of the high-frequency sound waves is also being adapted to treat Alzheimer’s disease, tumors and psychiatric disorders.

The measure, if enacted, would not legalize ma*****na at the federal level but still represents a milestone that could prove to be a political win for President Biden, who is campaigning for reelection and has sought to ameliorate racial and criminal justice inequities wrought by the nation’s long war on drugs.

Attorney general moves to reclassify ma*****na as lower-risk drug The measure, if enacted, would not instantly legalize ma*****na at the federal level but could broaden access to the drug for medicinal use.

The report cited concerns that some participants that received M**A felt “pressured to report good outcomes and suppress bad outcomes,” and flagged a documented case of therapist misconduct that raised safety risks.

Agony over ecstasy: FDA bid shows it’s hard to test psychedelics An independent analysis of clinical trials of M**A-assisted therapy raised doubts about the integrity of the studies. The sponsor is expecting the FDA to make a decision in August.

Doctors and nutrition experts say the children who survive the lack of nourishment — and the ongoing bombing, infectious diseases and psychological trauma — are further condemned to face a lifetime of health woes. Malnutrition will rob them of the ability to fully develop their brains and bodies. Many will be shorter and physically weaker as a result.

Gaza is going hungry. Its children could face a lifetime of harm. The toll of malnutrition on the human body is evident from adults to children. The younger the person, the greater the impact.

Products such as AvertD reflect hope that cutting-edge science can ease a drug epidemic killing more than 100,000 people in the United States each year, mostly from opioids.

DNA test says it can predict opioid addiction risk. Skeptics aren’t so sure. The Food and Drug Administration approved the test despite an agency committee of experts voting overwhelmingly against recommending approval.

For advocates, that study offers the latest evidence that patients should have access to the drug in the United States, where it remains illegal despite decades of encouraging findings, principally for use treating addiction. Even as momentum could be shifting in ibogaine’s favor, concerns persist about the threat the drug poses to the heart, reflecting a risk-reward calculation that frames studies of other psychedelic agents.

Psychedelic drug ibogaine hailed as healing. U.S. patients ask why it’s illegal. Even as momentum could be shifting in ibogaine’s favor, concerns persist about the threat the drug poses to the heart.

The tension over Measure 110, approved by voters more than three years ago, reflects wider, politically charged questions about what role law enforcement and courts should play in the nation’s drug crisis.

Oregon’s pioneering drug decriminalization effort faces rollback Drug decriminalization faces intense backlash in Oregon as Portland and other areas grapple with surges in fentanyl use and overdoses.

They fear that federal regulators’ deep-rooted skepticism of ma*****na and legal barriers will continue to hamper studies that must balance safety and scientific rigor with the immutable reality that millions already smoke joints, inhale v**es and eat edibles to medicate themselves.

Michigan wants to study ma*****na’s health benefits. It’s not easy. The effort underscores the challenges of studying potential health benefits and consequences of ma*****na when it is still federally illegal.

A Washington Post review of federal and state statistics shows that medical examiners and coroners are increasingly blaming deaths on kratom — it was listed as contributing to or causing at least 4,100 deaths in 44 states and D.C. between 2020 and 2022.

They take kratom to ease pain or anxiety. Sometimes, death follows. Industry groups and kratom advocates insist risks of the supplement are exaggerated.

Ross’s mother, Cathy Sheely, had never heard of nitazenes. She doubts her daughter knew she was ingesting them. “We’ve all heard of fentanyl but didn’t know there were these other drugs out there killing people,” Sheely said.

On the streets, opioids sometimes more potent than fentanyl: nitazenes The novel opioids can complicate overdose revivals and addiction treatment.

Advocates hope the 14 percentage point margin of victory in Ohio will ramp up pressure on the mostly GOP-run holdout states and, eventually, Congress. They point to the win as evidence that even conservative voters are skeptical of treating ma*****na as a law enforcement target and public health threat.

Ma*****na legalization faces tough odds in red states despite Ohio win Concerns about the public health implications of ma*****na legalization remain potent as the battle to overhaul drug laws moves to red states.