A $75,000 federal pass-through grant administered by the state health department will help Suffolk County fund a new training program for first responders on the front lines of the opioid epidemic. READ
Health
Across Suffolk County, 396 opioid-related deaths occurred in 2017 — more than one per day for the year. This year, as of Oct. 1, there have been 171 confirmed opioid deaths countywide.
While Suffolk County does not break down opioid deaths — or the uses of Narcan, the drug that can save the life of someone who is overdosing — by towns or hamlets, there are signs on eastern Long Island that the death rate in this epidemic is at least slowing. READ
With the nation in the throes of an opioid epidemic, more emphasis is being placed on preventing youth from starting down the path to addiction. A handful of East End groups dedicated to this mission offer year-round programming for students in an effort to help them avoid making decisions that experts say have the potential to spiral out of control. READ
Caregivers are often called the invisible patients. They carry a burden that can be isolating and stressful.
Advanced diseases and chronic illnesses such as Alzheimer’s, dementia and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease can affect a patient for years. READ
Officials held a groundbreaking ceremony for Wellbridge, a state of the art drug addiction treatment and research center at EPCAL
Plans for Wellbridge, the $90 million, 80-bed residential substance abuse treatment and research center slated for 40 acres at the Enterprise Park at Calverton, officially started about seven years ago, according to Andrew Drazen, the CEO and co-founder of Wellbridge.
As legal marijuana gets closer to becoming a reality in New York, state officials are asking the public: How can we get it right?
In September, the Department of Health launched a statewide listening tour bringing community organizers, physicians and pro-cannabis activists together to share their input as the state’s Regulated Marijuana Workgroup begins crafting language for an adult-use recreational marijuana law.
“We are not here to build consensus, but rather gather input,” from a variety of viewpoints, said Sandra Houston, a Department of Health official who moderated a session held in Ronkonkoma Tuesday evening. READ
A mosquito sample collected in Jamesport tested positive for West Nile virus, according to the Suffolk County Health Department. READ
Residents across New York will have the opportunity to share their thoughts on a regulated marijuana program over the next two months. READ
