Blog
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Zanetich v. Wal-Mart Stores East, Inc.
A brief summary of a New Jersey court case, with excerpts taken from PDFNJ’s quarterly update written by Stephen E. Trimboli, Esq., of Trimboli & Prusinowski, LLC. Mr. Trimboli represents business owners, non-profits and public bodies in labor and employment law matters and was the recipient of the 2019 PDFNJ Founder’s Award. Quarterly updates are sent to members of Don’t Drugs Work in NJ, PDFNJ’s free drug-free workplace program.
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In Memoriam - NJ Lt. Governor Sheila Oliver
The Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey mourns the passing of New Jersey Lt. Governor Sheila Oliver. Lt. Governor Oliver was a trailblazing politician and outstanding role model.
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Opioid Settlement Funds
Over the last several months states and counties throughout the country have begun to receive opioid settlement funds from companies that made, sold, or distributed opioid painkillers, like Johnson & Johnson, AmerisourceBergen, and Walmart.
These results can be linked to litigation brought by families, many of whom lost a loved one to the opioid epidemic.
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Discussing the Opioid and Fentanyl Epidemic
Last year the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey kicked off the Knock Out Opioid Abuse Day Learning Series with a webinar hosted by the award-winning author of “Dreamland: True Tales of America’s Opiate Epidemic”.
Sam has recently spoken out about the fentanyl crisis in the United States and the role played by Mexico in addressing the problem.
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Safe Prescribing, Opioid Alternatives, & Education
Last week Meet the Press had a segment about the country’s fentanyl crisis. Last year over 100,000 American families lost a loved one to this tragic epidemic.
One of the featured guests on Meet the Press was Dr. Andrew Kolodny, a founder of Physicians for Responsible Opioid Prescribing, and the 2018 recipient of the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey’s Angel Of Hope Award. The Partnership recognized Dr. Kolodny for his unwavering support of our opioid prescriber education efforts. He has also been a crucial advisor to our chair, Elaine Pozycki. It is Elaine's goal that all prescribers have a conversation with a patient (or a minor patient's parent or guardian) warning them of the addictive potential of prescribed opioids and discussing opioid alternatives where possible.
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Secure Your Medicine
Several weeks ago we lost our wonderful dog Rufus after 11 years as a cherished member of our family. It was disturbing to read this article about a dog that almost senselessly died because of exposure to heroin.
The Amercian Medicine Chest Challenge outlines 5 steps to help protect families, including family pets, from the dangers of opioids.
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Racial Inequality in Receipt of Medications for Opioid Use Disorder
A recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine reported on racial disparities in addiction treatment, including the new finding that White patients received medication for opioid use disorder (OUD) up to 80% more frequently than Black patients and up to 25% more frequently than Hispanic patients, according to a new study led by researchers at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Dartmouth College.
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Opioid Withdrawal: What We Need to Know
Patient notification of the risks of opioids has been a cornerstone of the PDFNJ message for the past decade - through public information campaigns and legislation that we have authored and advocated for that can help save lives. It is viral that patients and parents of patients are informed of risks for dependency and addiction from prescribed opioids. Patients need to be told about the signs and symptoms of dependency and addiction as well.
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Communication is Key in Protecting Our Children
We continue to learn more and shine light on the link between screen time, mental health and substance use.
Parents and caregivers - we must communicate the risks to our children and help them make healthy and safe decisions.
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New Opioid Overdose Reversal Nasal Spray
The FDA recently approved Opvee, a new opioid overdose reversal nasal spray that is similar to Narcan but contains nalmefene, the first reversal drug to do so. Currently, Opvee is available by prescription.