Kastalia Medrano

The Casualties of the “Passive Drug Exposure” Myth

In early August, 11 New York State corrections officers (COs) were at the scene of a medical emergency involving someone…

August 19, 2024

OK Prisons Privatize Mail, as “Digital Processing Centers” Expand Drug War

Beginning September 1, the Oklahoma Department of Corrections (ODOC) will no longer deliver physical mail to the nearly 23,000 people…

August 13, 2024

FDA Approves Risky Opioid Overdose Reversal Product From Purdue Pharma

On August 7 the Food and Drug Administration approved an opioid overdose antidote developed by Purdue Pharma that contains nalmefene,…

August 8, 2024

The Headlines Doing Fentanyl Math Will Always Be Wrong

Back when I was at the science desk at Newsweek, they used to bring in young reporters on $38,000 a…

August 6, 2024

SAMHSA’s National Drug Use Survey Still Has a Fentanyl Problem

On July 30, the Substance Use and Mental Health Services Administration released its annual survey on substance use, mental illness,…

July 31, 2024

“Like Two Cavalries”: After TN Prison Standoff, Fear of What Comes Next

On the evening of July 24, South Central Correctional Facility, a medium-security private prison in Tennessee, gave notice that 128…

July 29, 2024

Medicaid in Five States Will Cover MOUD for Prisoners Nearing Release

On July 2, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) more than doubled the number of states authorized to provide…

July 3, 2024

CA Mandates Extreme Heat Workplace Safety, Except in Forced Labor Camps

On June 20, the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (OSHA) approved the state’s first regulation protecting indoor workers…

June 24, 2024

Decades After It Set Meth Sentencing by Purity, USSC Surveys the Damage

Almost all controlled substances in the United States are criminalized by weight. There are thresholds that legally separate possession from…

June 20, 2024

VT Legalizes Safe Consumption Sites, Reversing Course on Veto Override

  [Update, June 17: This story has been edited to reflect the final outcome of the Assembly vote] Vermont has…

June 17, 2024