Skip to main content
Georgia Public Broadcasting Logo
  • TV

    Featured Specials and Programs

    • All Creatures Great and Small
    • Miss Scarlet & The Duke
    • Antiques Roadshow
    • PBS Newshour
    • Finding Your Roots
    • The U.S. and the Holocaust
    All Programs

    GPB Originals

    • Georgia Outdoors
    • View Finders
    • A Fork in the Road
    • The Steeple
    • Lawmakers
    • Football Fridays in Georgia
    GPB Originals

    Browse by Genre

    • Arts & Music
    • Culture
    • Drama
    • Food
    • History
    • News & Public Affairs
    • TV Schedule
    • GPB Programs
    • PBS Passport
    • TV Highlights this Week
    • PBS KIDS
    • Find Your Station
    • Newsletters
    • Contact GPB
  • Radio

    Featured Programs

    • Political Rewind
    • The Daily
    • Morning Edition
    • All Things Considered
    • Serendipity
    • John Lemley's City Cafe
    • Fresh Air
    • Here and Now
    • Code Switch/Life Kit
    • Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!
    All Programs

    Podcasts

    • GA Today
    • Salvation South
    • Battleground: Ballot Box
    • Football Fridays in Georgia
    • Classroom Conversations
    • Radio Schedule
    • GPB Classical
    • Radio Programs
    • Podcasts
    • GPB News
    • Find Your Station
    • Contact GPB
    • Newsletters
  • News

    Featured Programs & Series

    • Political Rewind
    • Lawmakers
    • Lawmakers: Beyond the Dome
    • 1A
    • Battleground: Ballot Box
    • GA Today Podcast
    • Southern Reading List
    • Powering Georgia
    • Food Access

    More GPB News

    • Politics
    • Georgia News
    • Justice
    • Arts & Life
    • Health
    All GPB News
    • Radio Schedule
    • Radio Stations
    • GPB Apps
    • Contact GPB News
    • Follow Us on Apple News
    • Newsletters
  • Education

    Browse by Subject

    • CTAE
    • English Language Arts
    • Mathematics
    • Physical Health and Wellness
    • Professional Learning
    • STEAM
    • Science
    • Social Studies
    • The Arts
    • World Languages

    Browse by Grade

    • Preschool-PreK
    • K-2
    • 3-5
    • 6-8
    • 9-12

    Featured

    • Classroom Conversations Podcast
    • Georgia Studies Collection
    • Econ Express
    • VR in the Classroom
    • Lights, Camera, Budget!
    • Georgia Home Classroom
    • Chemistry Matters
    • Physics in Motion
    • Virtual Field Trips
    • Writers Contest
    • PBS LearningMedia
    • PBS KIDS
  • Sports
  • Events

    Browse by Type

    • Community
    • Donor
    • Kids & Family
    • Screenings
    All Events

    Browse by Category

    • Education
    • News
    • Sports
    • Television

    Sign up to receive GPB Event announcements via Email.

    Sign up

    • on Twitter
    • on Facebook
    • on Instagram
  • Kids & Family

    For Kids

    • Video
    • Games

    For Parents & Caregivers

    • Kids & Family Blog
    • Kids & Family Events
  • Support Us

    Support GPB

    • Ways to Give
    • Planned Giving
    • Sustainers
    • GPB Passport
    • Leadership Giving
    • Corporate Sponsorship
    • Vehicle Donations
    • GPB Next
    • Matching Gifts
  • Search
GPB Passport icon GPB Passport icon Passport
GPB donate icon GPB donate icon Donate
Listen Live Listen Live Watch Live Watch Live
GPB News

GPB Newsletter CTA

Sign Up For Our Newsletter

News Topics

  • Georgia
  • National
  • Election
  • Lawmakers
  • Battleground: Ballot Box

Don't Miss

Don't Miss:

  • Watch: GPB's Lawmakers
  • TV Highlights This Week
  • GA Today daily podcast

News Articles: opioid crisis

CVS would pay nearly $5 billion over 10 years, while Walgreens would pay $5.7 billion over 15 years, in a settlement over their roles in the opioid crisis.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

CVS and Walgreens agree to pay $10 billion to settle lawsuits linked to opioid sales

CVS would pay about $5 billion and Walgreens more than $5.5 billion, though neither company has admitted wrongdoing. States have until the end of the year to accept the terms of the settlement.

December 13, 2022
|
By:
  • Ayana Archie
A drug overdose rescue kit is pictured in Buffalo, N.Y. The Biden administration plans to increase access to clean needles, fentanyl test strips and naloxone to combat drug overdose deaths.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Drug overdose deaths are at a record high. Here's what the White House plans to do

Harm reduction is one of four policies the Biden administration says must be immediately implemented in order to address the record high number of overdose deaths.

April 21, 2022
|
By:
  • Martha Bebinger
A volunteer with the Atlanta Harm Reduction Coalition gives out sterile syringes in exchange to get potentially contaminated needles off the street.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Stronger opioid reversal drugs are needed to combat the fentanyl crisis, Narcan developer says

Between early February and mid-March, at least 66 emergency department visits in Georgia involved the use of cocaine, methamphetamine, crack, heroin, pain killers and cannabis products that were likely laced with fentanyl, which is 30 to 50 times stronger than heroin. Experts worry about increased risk of overdose when users believe that the pills are legitimate pharmaceutical products.

April 07, 2022
|
By:
  • Ellen Eldridge
A heroin user in a South Bronx neighborhood which is experiencing an epidemic in drug use, especially heroin and other opioid based drugs.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Black Americans are now dying from drug overdoses at a higher rate than whites

New research shows drug overdose deaths continue to surge among Black Americans. For the first time since 1999, Black Americans are dying at a higher rate per capita than white Americans.

March 02, 2022
|
By:
  • Brian Mann
GPB News NPR

Tagged as: 

  • Health

4 U.S. companies will pay $26 billion to settle claims they fueled the opioid crisis

The companies, including Johnson & Johnson and McKesson, will admit no wrongdoing. Billions of dollars in payouts will fund drug treatment and harm reduction programs.

February 25, 2022
|
By:
  • Brian Mann
Johnson & Johnson and the opioid distributors AmerisourceBergen, McKesson and Cardinal Health reached a settlement with Native American tribes over their role in the opioid crisis.

Tagged as: 

  • Business

Native American tribes reach a tentative opioid settlement with J&J and distributors

Johnson & Johnson, AmerisourceBergen, McKesson and Cardinal Health will pay $590 million to Native American tribes under a proposed settlement for the companies' role in the opioid crisis.

February 01, 2022
|
By:
  • James Doubek
Trucks drive in front of Teva Pharmaceutical Logistic Center in the town of Shoam, Israel, on Oct. 16, 2013. On Thursday, a jury held Teva responsible for contributing to the opioid crisis.

Tagged as: 

  • Business

A jury holds Teva Pharmaceuticals liable in the opioid crisis

A separate trial will follow to determine what Teva will have to pay in the case, in which New York state and two Long Island counties took on a swath of drug companies.

December 31, 2021
|
By:
  • The Associated Press
Activists participate in a candlelight vigil calling for an end to the nation's opioid addiction crisis at the Ellipse in Washington, D.C., in August 2017.

Tagged as: 

  • National

More than a million Americans have died from overdoses during the opioid epidemic

New research released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found roughly 932,000 fatal overdoses from 1999-2020. Preliminary data shows another 100,000 deaths this year.

December 30, 2021
|
By:
  • Brian Mann
Shell neurons (green) project to the breathing center and core neurons (red) project to the pain/emotion center. Brain scientists have found the two are linked, shedding new light on opioid overdoses

Tagged as: 

  • Science

A brain circuit linking pain and breathing may offer a path to prevent opioid deaths

Opioids can kill because they reduce breathing along with pain. Now brain scientists have made a discovery that could lead to potent pain drugs that don't affect breathing.

December 22, 2021
|
By:
  • Jon Hamilton
A drug user prepares to inject himself with heroin inside VANDU's supervised injection room in Vancouver, Canada. Similar sites to the ones implemented in New York have proven successful in Canada.

Tagged as: 

  • National

New York City allows the nation's 1st supervised consumption sites for illegal drugs

Mayor Bill DeBlasio says these "overdose prevention centers" will reduce drug overdoses in New York City. Similar efforts in other U.S. cities face legal challenges.

November 30, 2021
|
By:
  • Brian Mann and
  • Caroline Lewis
A police officer holds a box of Narcan out the driver side window of his police car.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Addiction recovery community asks state to fund Narcan for EMS workers — especially rural ones

Narcan is the life-saving medication that can prevent death after an opioid overdose. Those deaths climbed 36% in Georgia during the first year of the pandemic, with rural communities hit harder than more urban areas.

November 29, 2021
|
By:
  • Ellen Eldridge
Betsy, played by Kaitlyn Dever, and Dr. Samuel Finnix, Michael Keaton, discuss her first Oxy prescription for back pain from a workplace injury.

Tagged as: 

  • National

So you've watched 'Dopesick'. Here's what you can do to help ease the opioid crisis

The Hulu series Dopesick depicts the start of the opioid addiction crisis in the U.S. As the crisis continues to grow, here's how you can help those affected in your community.

November 18, 2021
|
By:
  • Brian Mann and
  • Eric Deggans
GPB News NPR

Tagged as: 

  • National

'Dopesick' casts the Sacklers as villains of the opioid crisis. Reality is complex

Hulu's limited series Dopesick provides a cathartic piece of storytelling for those with connections to the opioid crisis.

November 12, 2021
|
By:
  • Brian Mann
In a ruling issued late Monday, Orange County Superior Court Judge Peter J. Wilson found the companies, including Johnson & Johnson, aren't "legally liable" for the opioid crisis.

Tagged as: 

  • Law

A California court says drug companies aren't liable for the state's opioid crisis

In a ruling issued late Monday, state superior court Judge Peter J. Wilson found the companies, including Johnson & Johnson, aren't "legally liable" for the opioid crisis.

November 02, 2021
|
By:
  • Brian Mann
Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. says the opioid crisis had disproportionately affected people in his community.

Tagged as: 

  • National

The Cherokee Nation Has Agreed To A $75 Million Settlement With Opioid Distributors

Cherokee Nation officials say their community has been disproportionately harmed by the opioid crisis. The drug companies deny any wrongdoing.

September 28, 2021
|
By:
  • Brian Mann
  • Load More

Newsletter Signup

Sign Up For Our Newsletters

Connect with GPB

  • Connect with GPB on Facebook
  • Connect with GPB on Instagram
  • Connect with GPB on Twitter
  • Connect with GPB on YouTube
  • Connect with GPB on Apple News

Footer

Footer First Nav (Main Menu)

  • TV
  • Radio
  • News
  • Education
  • Sports
  • Events
  • Kids & Family
  • Support Us
  • Search

Footer Second Nav Menu

  • Help Center
  • About GPB
  • Contact Us
  • Closed Captioning
  • Directions
  • Studio Production
  • Program Submissions

Footer Third Nav Menu

  • Support Us
  • Careers
  • Accessibility
  • FCC Public Files
  • Drawing Rules
  • News Media Request
  • Open Records Policy
  • Privacy Policy

Georgia Public Broadcasting

260 14th St. NW
Atlanta, GA 30318
United States

(404) 685-2400 In Atlanta
(800) 222-4788 Outside Atlanta
ask@gpb.org

Newsletter Signup

Sign Up For Our Newsletters

Connect with GPB

  • Connect with GPB on Facebook
  • Connect with GPB on Instagram
  • Connect with GPB on Twitter
  • Connect with GPB on YouTube
  • Connect with GPB on Apple News
© Copyright 2023, Georgia Public Broadcasting. All Rights Reserved. Georgia Public Radio® GPTV®