NDEWS ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTION

NDEWS presentation of 911 data

NDEWS presents the latest data on US counties with the highest 911 dispatches for opioids, methamphetamines, suicide attempts, and mental health events. Cook County, IL was the first in opioid related overdoses with 281 emergency medical services (EMS) calls. Please keep following NDEWS on Twitter and through our Weekly Briefing for more data. 

IN THE NEWS

CDC: 12 month-ending provisional number of drug overdose deaths

This week the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released their provisional drug overdose deaths through November 2020. The revamped website includes all drug overdose data as well as more resources and tools, and a sub-site in Spanish. The death counts are based on records received by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). Find the full counts here.

HIDTA ALERT: Fentanyl-laced marijuana

The Washington/Baltimore High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) released an informational bulletin this week regarding a case of fentanyl-contaminated marijuana in Northern Virginia. Areas surrounding Northern Virginia could be impacted. Find more information from the Washington/Baltimore HIDTA here.

DEA finalizes measures to expand medication-assisted treatment

From the Federal Register published this week, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) narcotic treatment program (NTP) registrants who are authorized to dispense methadone for opioid use disorder are now authorized to add a mobile component to their existing registration. Read the full rule here.

4-AcO-EPT

NPS Discovery issued an alert regarding the identification of 4-AcO-EPT. 4-AcO-EPT is classified as a novel tryptamine analogue. Tryptamine analogues have been reported to cause hallucinogenic effects, often associated with “psychedelic mushrooms.” Read the full alert here.

COVID-19 AND DRUG RELATED TRENDS

Sociodemographic changes in emergency department visits related to alcohol use during COVID-19

A new study published in Drug and Alcohol Dependence analyzed data from Emergency Department (ED) visits in Ontario during the first six months after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a global pandemic. Researchers found that ED visits related to alcohol use decreased overall, but increased by 15.9% in relation to total ED visits. Read the full study here.

Follow NDEWS on Twitter: @NDEWSnews