Jacksonville first responders are seeing fewer overdose 911 calls, but advocates advise that people should still remain cautious.

Walgreens has agreed to pay up to $350 million to resolve allegations that it illegally filled millions of opioid prescriptions and submitted false claims to federal healthcare programs, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Using money from the opioid settlement funds from big pharmaceutical companies, St. Johns County will partner with EPIC Behavioral Healthcare to build a sober living village in St. Johns County.

Drug deaths are down in Florida, with opioid-related deaths experiencing the most dramatic drop, according to a new report from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

Of those with chronic pain in the U.S., up to 30% misuse opioids -- that means millions are living in a vicious cycle of pain and addiction. An implant may help relieve their pain without drugs.

One Jacksonville man says his brother was almost a statistic. Now the two are working together to offer services to families who have an addicted love one and feel they have little hope left.

Overdoses in Jacksonville are increasing at an alarming rate, and the pandemic only made the situation worse.

That has overshadowed debate over how to handle the nation's drug overdose crisis, which has contributed to the deaths of more than 470,000 Americans over the last two decades. The exchange over Hunter Biden's struggle with addiction was brief, and neither candidate was asked a follow-up question about their plan to tackle the nation's drug addiction and overdose crisis. Yet drug addiction continues its grim march across the U.S., having contributed to the deaths of more than 470,000 Americans over the past two decades. Ohio, a battleground state in the presidential contest, is on track to have one of its deadliest years of opioid drug overdoses. For example, his policies eased access to drugs that are meant to control opioid addiction, especially for people receiving health coverage through Medicaid.

A Flagler County grand jury has indicted Jevante Taquana Hamilton on a first-degree murder charge in the death of a 25-year-old man who died last year from an overdose of Fentanyl. The investigation into the overdose death began Aug. 24, when Flagler County detectives found drug paraphernalia and baggy later determined to contain Fentanyl near the body. The State Attorney’s Office determined there was enough evidence to present the case to the grand jury. Delays in presenting the case to the grand jury were caused by the current COVID-19 pandemic. “This is the second successful investigation of a drug dealer who caused an overdose death being indicted by a grand jury for murder in Flagler County,” Sheriff Rick Staly said.

In 2016, Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department said it responded to 356 overdose calls with 180 of those calls related to opioids. Fast forward to 2020 and the number is up to 385 overdose calls with 243 of the calls being opioid-related. Since 2017, 1,281 people have consented to program services and seven people died from opioids. To give some perspective, JFRD reported 1,703 overdose calls as of March 13, 2019. Chart of JFRD overdose calls since 2015.

When my father lost his battle to addiction last year, I knew I needed to speak about it. My deceased son battled drug addiction. That’s where I met Val Jordan White and Carroll Miniard. That both Val and Carroll believe kick-started their addiction Both lost girlfriends from overdoses while sleeping high right next to them. 10900 Beach Blvd., Jacksonville - (904) 641-2122Breakthroughs Counseling & RecoveryAlcohol and drug addiction rehab treatment in an intensive outpatient environment.

Over-prescribing opioids has fueled the opioid crisisPublished: November 5, 2019, 6:16 pmBut doctors are now finding innovative ways to reduce us and abuse, including new moms

September is National Recovery Month and putting a face to addiction can help people better understand the disease. Since losing his fiancee, Misty, last February during a relapse, Heller has been sober for a year and a half. "The hope is that I keep doing the right thing and maybe I help people along the way. National Recovery Month raises awareness of mental and substance use disorders while celebrating people like Heller who are living a life in recovery. You can register to attend the National Recovery Month Town Hall in the River City this Friday.

In addition to this approval of the first generic naloxone nasal spray, moving forward we will prioritize our review of generic drug applications for naloxone. The FDA also has previously approved a brand-name naloxone nasal spray and an auto-injector for use by those without medical training. These steps include important work to improve the efficiency of the generic drug approval process and address barriers to generic drug development. Naloxone nasal spray does not require assembly and delivers a consistent, measured dose when used as directed. Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc. has received final FDA approval to market the generic naloxone nasal spray.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A grand jury indicted a man on a charge of first-degree murder Thursday in the death of a man from a fentanyl overdose -- the first murder indictment in the Fourth Judicial Circuit using a law passed last year by the Florida Legislature. After Thursday's indictment, Wadley was rebooked on one count of murder in the August 2018 death of Timothy Sexton. Law enforcement and lawmakers hope a murder charge will deter drug dealers. While the Wadley first-degree murder charge is breaking new ground for state prosecutors, it's not the first time authorities have pursued drug dealers for murder through the drugs they sold. The State Attorneys Office charged him initially with murder, but that charge was dropped when his case was moved to federal court.

Fontaine said cuts in substance-abuse treatment are particularly troubling. “Seventy percent of the people in prison have a drug problem, and these are the few critical services we have providing drug treatment and they’re talking about reducing those,” he said. He also said effective drug treatment can help reduce the rate of prisoners returning to the system, reduce costs and protect communities. Research-based drug treatment makes a difference,” Fontaine said. Brandes said health-care funding shortfalls have to be addressed, but he lamented the impact on the substance-abuse services.

These analogues seen earlier this year in the Ohio Valley and the Medical Examiner's Office reports seeing more bodies in Jacksonville with lethal combinations of fentanyl analogues. Narcan is widely used to reverse on opioid overdose but, the fentanyl analogues are so strong, Narcan often doesn’t work, and overdose calls to 911 in Jacksonville have doubled every year for three years. Of opioid deaths in the state last year, 965 of those people had used fentanyl analogs. Occurrences of fentanyl increased by 80 percent, and deaths caused by fentanyl skyrocketed by 97 percent. Duval County is the only county where the per capita number of fentanyl deaths exceeded 25 per 100,000 residents.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – From local police to state troopers and federal agents, ending the opioid epidemic takes a lot of players. The top authority is the Drug Enforcement Administration, which is actively working to stop drugs at the border and to end both the supply and demand in Northeast Florida. A DEA agent told News4Jax that much of the heroin is coming from Colombia and the fentanyl from China. He said heroin laced with fentanyl is the most dangerous drug DEA agents deal with. The drugs are so toxic, agents investigating drug scenes now have to wear airtight hazmat suits -- two of them -- with an oxygen tank to help them breathe.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Opioid drug overdoses could have killed more Americans than first projected, according to a report from the American Journal of Preventative Medicine. According to the report, nationwide, the opioid death rate was 24 percent higher than previously estimated. By region, opioid death rates were concentrated in the Mountain States, Rust Belt, Industrial North, New England and much of the South. Heroin deaths were particularly high in the Northeast and Rust Belt, but lower in the South and Mountain States. That’s because sometimes up to 25 percent of death certificates didn’t list the drug responsible for killing the person.