Adapting Peer Recovery for a Pandemic Three years ago, we profiled AnchorEd, an innovative initiative, developed in Rhode Island. This program enables peer recovery coaches to meet with overdose victims before their release from the hospital. In March, the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic sent everyone into lockdown. To continue helping people with [...]
Drug Czar Unpacks Our National Opioid Epidemic Strategy In its latest Strategy Report, the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) shared its strategy for building a stronger, healthier, drug-free society. To reach this goal, the ONDCP details three tactics for fighting the opioid epidemic. First, continue to prevent new substance [...]
Insys Therapeutic Execs Sentenced: Will Doctors Be Next? In February of 2019, we interviewed Palm Beach Post reporters Pat Beall and John Pacenti, about the trial of former executives from opioid manufacturer Insys Therapeutics. They’d been accused of racketeering, bribing doctors to prescribe their high-powered opioid fentanyl spray, Subsys, to patients [...]
New MLB Drug Testing Policy Could Be a Game Changer Last July, Major League Baseball fans were shocked when Tyler Skaggs, a rising star pitcher for the Los Angeles Angels, was found dead in his hotel room. The toxicology report indicated Skaggs had oxycodone, fentanyl and alcohol in his system, causing [...]
Rudy Giuliani & The Lost Opportunity to Make Them Pay In 2006, Purdue Pharma was under fire for falsely advertising the addictiveness of its opioid, OxyContin. Many families believed that handcuffs were the only justifiable punishment, and the Department of Justice (DOJ) seemed to agree. Yet, somehow Giuliani Partners LLC managed [...]
Our Favorite Episode from 2019: FDA Missteps that Helped Fuel Our Nation’s Health Crisis In 2019 we released 45 new podcasts covering books from best-selling authors such as Dopesick from Beth Macy and American Overdose from Chris McGreal, to important developments such as the MDL and the J&J Oklahoma trial and people making headlines such [...]
On October 21st, just as a landmark opioid trial was about to begin, a $260 million settlement was reached. The deal negotiated between three major opioid distributors, one opioid manufacturer, and Cuyahoga and Summit Country Ohio, resulted in a combination of cash payouts, and donations of addiction treatments. The first of its [...]
Today’s guest, Dr. Andrew Kolodny, is an authority on the opioid epidemic. As a Senior Scientist and, Co-Director of Opioid Policy Research at the Heller School for Social Policy and Management, Dr. Kolodny has a deep-rooted interest in public health. He began his career working for the New York City Department of [...]
Greg interviews Darshan Shah, the Chief Data Officer of the State of Indiana and the Executive Director of the Management and Performance Hub (MPH). He also speaks with Doug Huntsinger, the Special Assistant for Drug Prevention, Treatment, & Enforcement at Governor Holcomb’s Office. Through the MPH, Darshan, Doug, and the rest of [...]
Greg interviews Dr. Jay Butler, the Chief Medical Officer and Director of the Division of Public Health at the Alaska Department of Health and Human Services. He is also the Chairman of the Alaska Opioid Policy Task Force, a partnership between the Alaskan Advisory Board on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, Mental Health [...]
About Representative Jay Edwards State Representative Jay Edwards is serving his first term as state representative. He represents the 94th Ohio House District, which includes Athens, Meigs, Washington, and Vinton Counties. Representative Edwards was born and raised in [...]
Greg interviews Lisa Landau, the Bureau Chief of Health Care at the NYS Office of Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. Lisa and her team have been working since 2012 to remove health care coverage blocks for those seeking treatment for substance abuse disorder. Greg asks Lisa about why the denial rates for treatment [...]
Greg interviews Dave Aronberg, the State Attorney of Palm Beach County, Florida. Mr. Aronberg established a Sober Homes Task Force to combat the numerous flop-houses and fake treatment centers that have popped up around Delray Beach. Greg asks the State Attorney about how this problem developed and has continued to thrive. He [...]
Greg interviews Officer Bud Lytle, a Public Information and Crime Prevention Officer for the Chilicothe Police Department. Bud and his department have shifted from traditional police tactics to approaches more in line with social work to help combat the growing opioid epidemic in their county. Greg asks Bud about how the Chilicothe [...]
Greg interviews LeeAnne Cornyn, the director of the Children’s Initiative at Attorney General Mike Dewine’s office. Leanne has been working on a new child protective services program called START – Sobriety Treatment and Reducing Trauma – which, aims to provide support for children and parents who have been affected by substance abuse. [...]
Greg interviews Jac A. Charlier, the National Director for Justice Initiatives at TASC (Treatment Alternatives for Safe Communities) in Chicago, Illinois. Jac was instrumental in the creation of STEER (Stop, Triage, Engage, Educate and Rehabilitate) a pre-booking law enforcement and drug treatment linkage program operating in Montgomery County, Maryland. Like many police deflection [...]
Greg interviews Andrew Joseph, a journalist at The Boston Globe affiliated STAT. STAT focuses on finding and telling compelling stories about health, medicine, and scientific discovery. As a general assignment reporter, Andrew has covered a multitude of topics ranging from crime to health policy – including the recent repeal of the ACA and [...]
Greg interviews John Tharp, a sheriff in Lucas County, Ohio, responsible for launching the Drug Abuse Response Team (D.A.R.T.). Founded in 2014, the D.A.R.T. program aims to make a difference in the opioid epidemic in Western Ohio by aiding in the treatment, education, and support of those suffering from substance abuse, as well [...]
Greg interviews Senator Sherrod Brown, the senior United States Senator for Ohio. Prior to his election to office in 2007, Senator Brown served as a United States Representative for Ohio’s 13th Congressional District. He also has prior experience as the Ohio Secretary of State, teaching in Ohio’s public schools and working on his [...]
Greg interviews Mike McRill, a Community Resource Officer from the Sidney Police Department located in Sidney, Ohio and a former middle school teacher. Desiring to do more for his community and live his passion for law enforcement, he joined the Sidney Police Department in 2000. After becoming the Community Resource Officer in 2014, [...]
Greg interviews Rob Portman, a United States Senator from Cincinnati, Ohio. In September 1996, Senator Portman founded the Coalition for a Drug-Free Greater Cincinnati—now known as PreventionFIRST! The coalition’s purpose is to keep young people free of substance abuse. He was first elected to Senate in 2010, after winning 82 of Ohio’s 88 [...]
Greg interviews Todd Popovich, a resident of Rutland, Vermont with first-hand experience of the opioid epidemic sweeping the area. Todd, now in recovery, has struggled with substance abuse disorder in the past. He plans to graduate from his recovery program in two weeks, on February 23. He shares more about his [...]
Greg interviews Jennifer Levitz, reporter with the Wall Street Journal, to discuss what she has learned investigating the opioid epidemic. Jennifer’s recent article, Vermont’s Radical Experiment to Break the Addiction Cycle, tells the story of Todd Popovitch, a former drug user who has been given a second chance under Vermont’s revolutionary new policies [...]
Greg interviews an administrative panel from Lacey Township School District, including Superintendent Craig Wigley, Assistant Superintendent Dr. Vanessa Clark, and District Supervisor William Zylinski. The Lacey School District has recently addressed a hot topic by conducting random drug testing in their high school. While the school has always been aware of drug testing, [...]
Greg interviews Sergeant Pat Greenhill, the Sergeant of the Berea Police Department and PAARI (The Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative) Program Coordinator for Community Engagement. They are joined by PAARI State Representative Nicole Walmsley. You can listen to her first podcast episode here. As Sergeant Greenhill explains, PAARI is a national organization [...]
Judge Thomas Teodosio runs a compassionate drug court in the Summit County Court of Common Pleas called The Turning Point. He discusses how the special court was founded and the success the court has experienced. Judge Teodosio has been running Summit County’s drug court for the past 8 years. He says the court [...]
It’s no secret that arrest, imprisonment, and conviction don’t break addiction. All over the US, civic officials are waking up to the brokenness of the system. Cops and robbers isn’t working. It isn’t saving our sons and daughters. If addiction is a physical brain disease, why don’t we get to the root of [...]
Greg interviews Captain Michael Shearer, Captain of the Akron Police Department Narcotics Division. Captain Shearer has spent 25 years on the police force, in various roles. He has been Captain of the Police Department since 2005. Akron has experienced a tragic spike in heroin overdoses this summer. In July, first responder calls went [...]
Greg interviews Nicole Walmsley, State Representative of the Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative. Through her efforts, the initiative is now active in the city of Lodi’s police department. The initiative works to support the Gloucester Police addiction initiative, to aid other police departments, and to foster a dialogue for police departments to [...]
Greg interviews Robert Sprague, Ohio State Representative. He represents the 83rd District in the Ohio House of Representatives. Since Robert has been in office, he has been associated with the passing of 14 bills for opioid addiction legislation. The Good Samaritan Law goes into effect on September 13, 2016. Greg asks Representative [...]
A recent overdose crisis in Cincinnati, Ohio on August 27, 2016 made headlines after the city dealt with 78 overdoses over a span of 2 days. The USA Today article on the tragedy referenced the outstanding overdose statistics of Hamilton County, located just north of Cincinnati. The county reported having a 35% decrease [...]
Huntington, West Virginia made headlines this past Monday, August 15, 2016, after 26 people overdosed on heroin in the span of only 4 hours. Thankfully, there were no deaths and everyone who overdosed survived due to the quick response time of emergency services. Gordon Merry, EMS Director, acted quickly and diverted his resources [...]
George Loucas discusses the increase of the opioid epidemic over the last 10 years. Mr. Loucas is the founder of Loucas Law, a medical malpractice firm that specializes in wrongful death cases involving prescription opiates. Loucas Law’s first case was about 10 years ago. It involved a person who had taken too many [...]
Greg interviews Ohio State Representative Robert Sprague, 83rd House District. As chairman of the Finance Subcommittee on Health and Human Services, Representative Sprague brings an important perspective to the fight against the opioid epidemic: since taking office, he has sponsored or endorsed 14 pieces of opioid-related legislation. Greg asks why the opioid epidemic [...]
In this episode of the Cover2 Podcast, Greg interviews Dr. Tom Gilson, Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner. Dr. Gilson has worked as a medical examiner for 22 years, the last 5 in Cuyahoga County. In that short span of time, he has seen an opioid epidemic emerge in Northeast Ohio. “In Cuyahoga County, in [...]
In this episode of the Cover2 Resources Podcast, Greg McNeil, Founder and President, interviews Judge David T. Matia. Judge Matia presides over the Cuyahoga County Drug Court, the first of its kind in Cleveland. He has had a powerful role brokering justice and compassion in the lives of Cleveland’s drug addicts. In this [...]
