This story, originally published by the Knoxville News-Sentinel, appeared July 6, 2018. Copyright 2018 Knoxville News-Sentinel. The marching orders for Purdue Pharma’s 87 Tennessee opioid marketers from their bosses each day were simple: “Sell hope in a bottle” and “always be closing,” newly revealed internal records show. A lawsuit unsealed this week in Knox County… [Read More]
1 family, 3 deaths: Couple must pick up pieces — again — after opioids’ destruction
This story, originally published by The Tennessean, appeared July 1, 2018. Copyright 2018 The Tennessean. In hindsight, all the odd events added up. The missing soda bottle caps and the vanishing spoons from the kitchen drawer. The hollow excuses and the irresponsible decisions. How Heather Baltz would sleep through her infant son’s cries and return… [Read More]
Has Tennessee Turned The Corner On Drug-Dependent Babies?
This story, originally published by Nashville Public Radio appeared July 5, 2018. Copyright 2018 Nashville Public Radio. The tide may be starting to turn on the number of drug-dependent babies in Tennessee. After an alarming 5-year rise, the number of infants going through withdrawals from opioids is down by more than a quarter from the… [Read More]
Opioid-Makers Cut Back On Marketing Payments To Doctors
This story, originally published by NPR, appeared June 28, 2018. Copyright 2018 NPR. The past two years have been a time of reckoning for pharmaceutical manufacturers over their role in promoting opioid drugs that have fed a national epidemic. Lawsuits and media reports have accused Purdue Pharma, the maker of OxyContin, of aggressively marketing the powerful narcotic… [Read More]
Origins of an epidemic: Purdue Pharma knew its opioids were widely abused
This story, originally published by CNBC, appeared May 29, 2018. Copyright 2018 CNBC. Purdue Pharma, the company that planted the seeds of the opioid epidemic through its aggressive marketing of OxyContin, has long claimed it was unaware of the powerful opioid painkiller’s growing abuse until years after it went on the market. But a copy… [Read More]
Tri-Cities growth stunted by opioid epidemic
This story, originally published by WCYB, appeared May 23, 2018. Copyright 2018 WCYB. Not only is the opioid epidemic destroying families in the Tri-Cities, but it’s also putting a stranglehold on our community’s ability to grow. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, unemployment in Kingsport, Bristol, Tenn. and Bristol, Virginia is 3.8 percent, though… [Read More]