Reverbiage: Stories from NPR tagged 'drugs'

Texas Town Works To Avoid 'Spillover' From Mexico Killings

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 12:00:00 EST

The drug cartel violence in Mexico is impacting the relationships between Mexican and American border towns. Beto O'Rourke, a city representative of El Paso, Texas explains how the city is struggling with the after effects of the violence.

In Juarez, Gangs Come In Many Forms

Tue, 06 Jan 2009 13:00:00 EST

We talk with residents of Juarez, Mexico about the murders that plague their city. The military has stepped up its presence to try to turn the tide of drug gang violence. But the public is not impressed, and many wish the soldiers would leave.

Police Probing How Prescription Pills Got Into Cake

Tue, 06 Jan 2009 05:51:00 EST

A Connecticut woman who works at a home for the disabled made a cake for residents. She told police she accidentally spilled prescription pills into the batter. She thought she had retrieved all of them before baking and serving the cake. Apparently she missed some. Employees called police when they spotted the drugs in the cake. Residents and employee were evaluated at local hospitals but did not suffer any ill effects.

Washington May Deport Illegal Immigrant Inmates

Mon, 05 Jan 2009 13:00:00 EST

Washington State governor Christine Gregoire wants to deport illegal immigrants currently serving time in state prisons, convicted of drug or property crimes. She says it would save the state more than $9 million over the next two years.

Grocery Chain Giant Offers Free Antibiotics

Fri, 02 Jan 2009 16:00:00 EST

Grocery retailer Giant, which operates about 160 pharmacies in the mid-Atlantic states, is offering free generic drugs this winter. The company says it knows it will lose money, but says its pharmacists have heard many anecdotes about families struggling.

FDA Reverses Cephalosporin Ban

Mon, 29 Dec 2008 06:00:00 EST

The Food and Drug Administration had planned to ban the use of a popular antibiotic from use in animal feed. At the last minute, the agency pulled back. Cephalosporin is one of the most important drugs for treating infectious diseases in humans.

Take Advantage Of Medicare Changes Now

Sat, 27 Dec 2008 00:07:00 EST

You only have until Dec. 31 to switch from one Medicare prescription drug plan to another. With many insurers changing the details of next year's plans, it's worth reconsidering which plan is best for you.

Printer Sees Recession In Black And White

Thu, 25 Dec 2008 00:43:00 EST

At the Universal Printing Co. in Brooklyn, N.Y., Frank Caracciolo has found a steady source of high-end, profitable work. He's betting that drug companies' orders for fancy business cards will help him weather the economic downturn.

Mexican Drug Lords Diversify Their Business

Fri, 19 Dec 2008 13:00:00 EST

Drug violence in Mexico is way up. But demand for drugs in the U.S. in down. So drug lords are turning to other more violent ways to make money. We explore how this situation plays out in the border community of Tijuana.

Former Inmate Believes In The Power Of Pardons

Wed, 17 Dec 2008 14:46:00 EST

Kemba Smith was sentenced to 24 years in prison for conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine — though she never handled the drug — because of mandatory sentencing laws. She was pardoned in 2000, and she urges President Bush to grant clemency to inmates with similar stories.

L.A. School Helps Kids By Forcing Them To Work

Wed, 17 Dec 2008 13:00:00 EST

South Central Los Angeles has a nearly 50 percent dropout rate. The LAUSD is struggling to educate students while contending with gang activity, drug dealing, and poverty. At Verbum Dei High School, they're trying a new approach: requiring students to work part-time.

Economic Growing Pains For Russian Industrial City

Mon, 15 Dec 2008 00:58:00 EST

Ten years ago, Chelyabinsk was still stuck in the Soviet past, gray and grim. Now, instead of decrepit steel mills and arms factories, new mega-malls, supermarkets, cafes, hotels and museums fill the town center. But the new confidence has also seen a rise in drug use and widening class divisions.

Attitudes Contribute To HIV Crisis In Russian City

Sat, 13 Dec 2008 17:22:00 EST

The Russian city Chelyabinsk is a major transit point for drugs coming from Central Asia and Afghanistan. Because of that, there has been a dramatic increase in drug use and, with it, an explosion in HIV. Local officials estimate 1 in every 100 residents is now infected — twice the national average.

FDA Advisers Urge Curbs On Some Asthma Drugs

Thu, 11 Dec 2008 16:00:00 EST

Advisers to the Food and Drug Administration have recommend that drugs Serevent and Foradil no longer be used for asthma. Top-selling Advair was not affected by the recommendation.

Juarez Sees Huge Spike In Drug-Related Murders

Thu, 11 Dec 2008 13:09:00 EST

Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, is being torn apart by a drug war. The number of murders in the city is nearly five times the number of killings last year, and local and federal authorities are having an difficult time depressing the crime rate. About seven people are being killed daily.

FDA Panel Considers Risks Of Asthma Drugs

Thu, 11 Dec 2008 06:00:00 EST

The Food and Drug Administration has taken on another difficult challenge. This time it's the safety of medication for severe asthma. Many doctors and professional groups say the drugs are life-savers. But the agency is considering whether the drugs may make asthma worse, or even deadly.

Obama Nominates Shinseki To Lead VA

Sun, 07 Dec 2008 16:00:00 EST

President-elect Barack Obama on Sunday introduced retired Gen. Eric Shinseki as his choice to run the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Obama's charge to Shinseki: Help veterans facing problems like drug abuse, homelessness and poor health care.

'Rent' Gets A High School Makeover

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 16:28:00 EST

More than 50 student groups across the country are performing Jonathan Larson's edgy rock opera Rent this school year. Like the Broadway show, Rent School Edition is centered on a group of friends in the 1990s dealing with AIDS, gender identity, homosexuality, drug addiction and poverty.

Economy, Drug Wars Hurt Cross-Border Business

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 13:14:00 EST

El Paso, Texas, and Ciudad Juarez in Mexico are economically tightly intertwined. The economic downturn in the U.S. is hurting the hundreds of assembly plants just across the border as a raging drug war that's killed some 1,400 people in Juarez this year is squashing tourism.

Cleveland Clinic To Report Doctors' Drug Links

Wed, 03 Dec 2008 16:00:00 EST

The Cleveland Clinic plans to begin reporting the business relationships that its 1,800 staff doctors and scientists have with drug and device makers. The clinic says it will make a complete disclosure of doctors' and researchers' financial ties available on its Web site.

Drug Deaths, Violence Plague Border In Tijuana

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 12:17:00 EST

Controlling immigration at the border between Mexico and the U.S. is proving challenging as drug cartels, money, gang violence and politics clash with a potentially idyllic and green city just south of San Diego. Tijuana is suffering as a result of the violence, officials say.

Controversy Follows Science Host's industry Ties

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 17:09:00 EST

The host of the radio show The Infinite Mind has been criticized recently for failing to disclose payments from drug companies.

Should Healthy People Take Statins...

Fri, 14 Nov 2008 11:50:00 EST

A study in The New England Journal of Medicine suggests that the drug Crestor, typically used for reducing cholesterol levels, may reduce the risk of heart disease for people with normal cholesterol levels. But do the potential benefits offset the risks and cost of the drugs?

In Lowering Cholesterol, How Low Do You Go...

Wed, 12 Nov 2008 20:45:00 EST

This week's new study showing that a cholesterol-lowering statin drug can cut the risk of heart attack or stroke has opened up a debate over how aggressive doctors and patients should be when it comes to using statins — and who should take them.

Radio Comic Part II: Dancing For Drugs

Tue, 11 Nov 2008 13:00:00 EST

This week, we are presenting a radio comic strip about the new economy. In part two, a middle class family experiments with "how to be poor."