Virginia psychiatric hospitals run short on open beds

CATAWBA, Va. (AP) — Data from health officials in Virginia say the state’s psychiatric hospitals have been operating at 90% capacity or higher for the past three years. The Daily Press reports Virginia Secretary of Health and Human Resources Daniel Carey is seeking nearly $20 million over the next...

Fake doctors, pilfered medical records drive Oxy China sales

SHANGHAI (AP) — Thousands of lawsuits across the United States have accused a drug company owned by the billionaire Sackler family of using false claims to push highly addictive opioids on an unsuspecting nation, fueling the deadliest drug epidemic in U.S. history. Yet, even as its U.S. drugmaker collapses...

Son of former German president stabbed to death in Berlin

BERLIN (AP) — The son of former German president Richard von Weizsaecker was stabbed to death while he was giving a lecture at a hospital in Berlin where he worked as a head physician, police said Wednesday. A 57-year-old German man is in custody after he jumped up from the audience at the...

W Virginia to open medical marijuana business applications

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — Businesses hoping to break into West Virginia’s fledgling marijuana market will soon be able to apply for permits as growers, processors, dispensaries and laboratories. The state Bureau of Public Health says its Office of Medical Cannabis will open applications on Dec. 19....

Georgia woman gets life sentence in boyfriend’s slaying

COLUMBUS, Ga. (AP) — A Georgia woman convicted of shooting her boyfriend to death then confessing to the crime at a mental health facility has been sentenced to life in prison. The Ledger-Enquirer reports 45-year-old Yashicer Alexandra Pritchett was found guilty of felony murder on Monday for the 2018...

AP key findings about Mundipharma’s OxyContin sales in China

SHANGHAI (AP) — The Sackler family’s opioid empire in the United States is collapsing under an avalanche of litigation over marketing tactics. Their Purdue Pharma company is in bankruptcy, but the family continues to profit from sales of their signature painkiller OxyContin abroad. Sales reps at...

Fake doctors, misleading claims drive OxyContin China sales

SHANGHAI (AP) — OxyContin is a dying business in the United States. Purdue Pharma, owned by the billionaire Sackler family, is collapsing under an avalanche of lawsuits that accuse the company of using false claims to push its blockbuster painkiller in the U.S., profiting as an unsuspecting nation slipped...

Mundipharma is promoting OxyContin in China with claims its U.S. affiliate, Purdue Pharma, admitted in court were false

SHANGHAI (AP) — Mundipharma is promoting OxyContin in China with claims its U.S. affiliate, Purdue Pharma, admitted in court were false.

Nurses picket Honolulu hospital in ongoing contract dispute

HONOLULU (AP) — A group of more than 50 nurses have carried picket signs near a Hawaii hospital to protest contract issues. The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported the nurses picketed outside Straub Medical Center in Honolulu Tuesday. The nurses have been working without a contract since Nov. 1. The Hawaii...

AMA calls for total ban on all e-cigarette, vaping products

The American Medical Association on Tuesday called for an immediate ban on all electronic cigarettes and vaping devices. The group adopted the sweeping stance at a policy-making meeting in San Diego. It aims to lobby for state and federal laws, regulations or legal action to achieve a ban, but the industry is...