Among those being cited by police for violating the Ohio governor’s orders are those struggling with addiction. They aren’t being jailed, but are facing fines and the possibility of jail time. “It’s such a shame that we’re there and ladling on charges to someone who’s really in a health crisis,” said one addiction expert. Other news on the opioid crisis is in online counseling services.
Cincinnati Enquirer: Coronavirus: OD Victims Charged With Violating Stay-At-Home Order.
Addiction experts who help those who use drugs question the effectiveness of citing a drug overdose victim with violating the state order. And they say the policy can be a setback during a years-long, no-end-in-sight opioid epidemic. (DeMio and Knight, 4/22)
Kaiser Health News: Coronavirus Crisis Opens Access To Online Opioid Addiction Treatment
Opioid addiction isn’t taking a break during the coronavirus pandemic. But the U.S. response to the viral crisis is making addiction treatment easier to get. Under the national emergency declared by the Trump administration in March, the government has suspended a federal law that required patients to have an in-person visit with a physician before they could be prescribed drugs that help quell withdrawal symptoms, such as Suboxone. (Galewitz, 4/23)
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