Opioids

In the first six months of 2022 alone, there were 118 fentanyl-related overdoses in Travis County. That’s the same number the county saw in all of last year.

Fentanyl is the leading cause of opioid deaths in the state, increasing five-fold in recent years.

The state’s federally funded “More Narcan Please” program ran out of money in January, in part due to high demand. Advocates say Texas should invest more in the harm reduction effort.

New numbers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that synthetic opioid use is driving the overdose crisis in the U.S.

The money is part of a $26 billion agreement including several other states.

As opioid and other drug overdoses rise in the state, the researchers hope the program will provide a more complete understanding of the state’s overdose crisis and help guide solutions.

Tuesday's verdict comes as CVS, Walgreens and Walmart face thousands of lawsuits filed by communities across the U.S. The companies say they did nothing wrong dispensing huge quantities of opioids.

The Biden administration scrambles to respond as new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show overdose deaths surged to more than 100,000 fatalities.

The Austin area saw a nearly 40% increase in fatal overdoses during the pandemic.

Researchers say cocaine, meth and other street drugs are increasingly contaminated with deadly synthetic opioids, contributing to a major spike in deaths.