Opioids

"They peddled this concept to doctors, claiming that these signs were merely symptoms of under-treated pain, and that patients were actually not being given enough opioids."

According to a new NPR/Ipsos opioid poll, 71% of Americans surveyed also say the government should do more to curb the epidemic.

"Basically, if you overdose on fentanyl, you’re probably not gonna get revived even if someone tries to. It’s a death sentence. It’s very concerning."

Fentanyl is responsible for an uptick in drug overdoses and deaths in recent years.

Shannon Monnat, professor of public health at Syracuse University, says the national emergency is an example of how current policies don't help.

Binghamton-area state senator Fred Akshar introduced a bill that bans supervised injection sites like the one under consideration in Ithaca. Now, his proposal has a twin in New York's lower house.

Broome County District Attorney Steve Cornwell says he won't serve another full term so it would be dishonest to seek re-election in 2019.

A health network in Pennsylvania's Tioga County hopes to reduce the abuse of unused medications by making them harder to find. Nationally, young people who abuse prescription opioids usually get them from friends and relatives.

"It’s like we’ve learned nothing from the failures of our drug policies over the past 40 years... If we were to invest similar money into revitalizing social infrastructure and economic infrastructure and our educational system we would see long term benefits," said Shannon Monnat, sociology professor at Syracuse University, who specializes in public health.

ROCHESTER, NY (WXXI) - Opioid treatment programs in New York have not been using a state database that tracks opioid prescriptions, according to an audit from the state comptroller’s office released Monday.