Latest Epidemics News
White House sets 'new direction' in biodefense strategy
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration on Tuesday released a new biodefense strategy that it said takes a more comprehensive approach to preparing the nation for deliberate biological attacks and natural outbreaks of infectious disease. The goal of the strategy, which was required by Congress, is to...
Gallery owner gets probation in spoon sculpture case
STAMFORD, Conn. (AP) — A Connecticut art gallery owner arrested for putting a drug spoon sculpture outside a pharmaceutical company's headquarters to protest the opioid crisis has been accepted into a probation program. A state judge in Stamford approved accelerated rehabilitation Monday for Fernando...
To avoid overdoses, some test their heroin before taking it
NEW YORK (AP) — The newest tool in the fight against opioid overdoses is an inexpensive test strip that can help heroin users detect a potentially deadly contaminant in their drugs. Sales of fentanyl test strips have exploded as a growing number of overdose-prevention programs hand them out to people who...
Gallery owner to return to court in spoon sculpture case
STAMFORD, Conn. (AP) — A Connecticut art gallery owner could soon learn whether he will receive a probation program for helping place a steel sculpture of a drug spoon outside drug maker Purdue Pharma's headquarters in protest of the opioid epidemic. Fernando Alvarez is scheduled to appear in Stamford...
Task force will look at establishing special opioid courts
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Connecticut is considering setting up special courts or processes to deal with defendants who are caught up in the ongoing opioid epidemic. A task force holds its first meeting on Tuesday in at the state courthouse in Torrington to discuss the idea of "Opioid Intervention Courts."...
Zimbabwe's government criticized over cholera outbreak
HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — Zimbabwe's new government is battling criticism over a cholera outbreak that has killed at least 25 people. A crowdfunding initiative by the finance minister amid reports of government spending on new vehicles for Cabinet members has only swelled public anger. Some local...
Opioid council rejects safe injection site idea
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) — Vermont Republican Gov. Phil Scott's opioid coordination council discussed safe injection sites as a possible remedy to the ongoing opioid epidemic, but concluded they are not appropriate at this time. The council did endorse greater investment by the state in syringe service...
News crew van broken into during report on burglaries
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A television crew reporting on San Francisco's auto break-in epidemic by secretly recording a suspect breaking into a "bait car" also fell victim to a vehicle burglar who broke into the crew's van and stole their video equipment. The syndicated news show Inside Edition aired the...
Calling teen vaping 'epidemic,' officials weigh flavor ban
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. health officials are sounding the alarm about teenage use of e-cigarettes, calling the problem an "epidemic" and ordering manufacturers to reverse the trend or risk having their flavored vaping products pulled from the market. The warning from the Food and Drug Administration on...
Cholera outbreak in Zimbabwe's capital escalates; 21 dead
HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — Zimbabwe's police said Wednesday that they are banning "public gatherings" in Harare in an effort to curb a cholera outbreak that has killed 21 people. Police spokeswoman Charity Charamba said in a statement Wednesday that the ban aims to alleviate "the continuous spread" of cholera...
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