opioid crisis

DoD IG blames systemic flaws for potential overprescribing of opioids

In today’s Federal Newscast: Martin O’Malley turned 60 this year; now he gets to run the Social Security Administration. The Defense Department IG is warning…

Federal Newscast

Peter Musurlian

This team from HHS has spent five years taking on the rural crisis of opioid use

Management

Fewer federal employees are addicted to opioids thanks to this Labor Department employee

People

U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Acting Administrator Uttam Dhillon announced the launch of Operation Crystal Shield at a news conference in Atlanta on Thursday, Feb. 20, 2020. Federal authorities say they are targeting methamphetamine

The DEA reopens its museum after a two year renovation

Innovation in Government

Partnership for Public Service

NIST scientist develops way to analyze illegal opioids faster, earns Sammies nod

People

FILE - In this Feb. 10, 2015 file photo, Dr. Rahul Gupta, state health officer of West Virginia, talks in his office in Charleston, W.Va. President Joe Biden is nominating West Virginia’s former health commissioner as the nation’s top anti-drug official, tapping an official who served on the frontlines of the nation’s opioid epidemic. The White House says Dr. Rahul Gupta will be the first physician to lead the Office of National Drug Control Policy, also known as the “drug czar.” (AP Photo/John Raby)

Biden picks ex-West Virginia health official as drug czar

People

FILE - This Aug. 29, 2018, file photo shows an arrangement of prescription oxycodone pills in New York. U.S. health officials Tuesday, April 9. 2019, warned doctors not to abruptly stop prescribing opioid painkillers to patients who are taking them for chronic pain ailments, such as backaches. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)

The DEA keeps an eye on a problem that predated the pandemic, and will be here long after

Workforce

A mail truck moves down a street Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2020, in Fox Point, Wis. Facing public pressure and state lawsuits, the Postmaster general announced Tuesday he is halting some operational changes to mail delivery that critics warned were causing widespread delays and could disrupt voting in the November election. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

USPS, CBP get ‘incomplete’ from Congress on stopping opioids in the mail

Agency Oversight

CDC doctor and Sammies finalist helps track over prescribed opioids

People

FILE - This Aug. 15, 2017 file photo shows an arrangement of pills of the opioid oxycodone-acetaminophen, also known as Percocet, in New York. Dozens of Ohio local government leaders gathered privately Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020, to discuss how to divide millions of dollars from a prospective opioid settlement. The goal is to position themselves to enter settlement talks with drugmakers as a united front with the state, which would be a first nationally. (AP Photo/Patrick Sison, File)

DEA suggesting new method of regulating legal opioids

IG’s concerns over OPM-GSA merger persist as reorganization remains in flux

Workforce

FILE - This Jan. 31, 2019 file photo shows a display of fentanyl and meth that was seized by Customs and Border Protection officers over the weekend at the Nogales Port of Entry at a press conference in Nogales, Ariz. Law enforcement officers in the U.S. Southwest say they have also seen fentanyl-laced pills mimicking Vicodin pain medicine and Xanax anti-anxiety tablets, as well as fentanyl powder to mix with heroin for an extra kick. Officers say that because the tablets are designed to look like prescription medicine, consumers often don't know they are swallowing fentanyl. And because they are made without any kind of quality control, taking them is like Russian roulette because the amount of fentanyl in each can vary widely. (Mamta Popat/Arizona Daily Star via AP, File)

IG warns customs officers intercepting fentanyl at risk of exposure

Best listening experience is on Chrome, Firefox or Safari. Subscribe to Federal Drive’s daily audio interviews on Apple Podcasts or PodcastOne. The…

Federal Drive

The opioid crisis has become a central focus of several federal agencies

Academic Juliette Kayyem argues the government could be better organized and do even more to battle the opioid crisis and that more oversight is needed.

Federal Drive

Governments use cloud technology to combat opioid crisis

Ask the CIO: SLED

Public servants and the first lady of North Dakota say cloud computing across levels of government can help combat the national opioid crisis.