drug abuse

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services appears poised to cut a $56 million annual grant program that pays for some of Missouri's overdose reversal medication and training.

A Wellness Court opened this month within Kansas City's Municipal Court, replacing the separate mental health and drug courts. The new approach offers a unique focus on co-occurring issues and lowers the barriers for people to get help.

Missouri officials say the overdose reversal drug naloxone helped contribute to the first decrease in drug-related deaths since 2015.

Missouri lawmakers will consider dozens of health-related bills this session. Topics like insulin pricing, food labeling and mental health are top of mind, as well as efforts to reverse the abortion rights amendment passed by voters in November.

Victims of the opioid crisis, health advocates, and policy experts have called on state and local governments to clearly report how they’re using the funds they are receiving from settlements with opioid companies. So where are Missouri's dollars going?

Drug overdose deaths are dropping across the Kansas City metro area, matching recently announced national trends. It’s a stark reversal from previous years, and health experts hope these positive changes continue.

After decades of devastating increases driven by fentanyl and other toxic street drugs, overdose deaths are dropping sharply in much of the U.S. In Missouri, drug deaths dropped 10% last year, and now the decrease seems to be accelerating.

Missouri child advocates and legislators are alarmed over the sporadic use of a program to steer parents to drug rehabilitation and keep their children out of foster care. It's especially underutilized in Kansas City and St. Louis.

More than two-thirds of local governments had not spent any of the funds they received from suing drug companies and distributors over the opioid crisis. Missouri law requires that the money be used for treatment, prevention and other addiction abatement.

Opioid settlement payouts will be made to thousands of communities across the country over 18 years. Payouts in the Kansas City metropolitan area so far have ranged from $2.4 million to Kansas City, Missouri, to Kansas City to $4,500 to Westwood, Kansas.

Native Americans in Kansas can often face barriers when seeking help for their recovery. A Wichita group is hoping to change that.

Missouri, which earned the infamous nickname of "meth capital of America," played a key role in the drug's spread across the country. A new podcast tells that story.