Overdose Prevention Episodes

562: Harm Reduction Gets Legislative Attention, Tainted Applesauce Investigation Expands
Dec. 12, 2023

562: Harm Reduction Gets Legislative Attention, Tainted Applesauce Investigation Expands

Dr. Steven Stack, ASTHO president and commissioner of public health for the Commonwealth of Kentucky, discusses substance misuse and overdose prevention strategies; Dr. Susan Kansagra, North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services assistant...
559: Policy Ideas Address Maternal Morbidity, Investment in the 9-8-8 Hotline
Dec. 7, 2023

559: Policy Ideas Address Maternal Morbidity, Investment in the 9-8-8 Hotline

Dr. Sameer Vohra, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, examines the third edition of the state’s maternal morbidity and mortality report; Dr. Umair Shah, secretary of health for the Washington State Department of Health, discusses...
558: A Call to Expand Naloxone Availability, Policies to Solve Maternity Care Deserts
Dec. 6, 2023

558: A Call to Expand Naloxone Availability, Policies to Solve Maternity Care Deserts

ASTHO President and Kentucky Health Commissioner Dr. Steven Stack says easier access to naloxone could help prevent many overdose deaths; former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams says naloxone should be as easy to find as AED devices that prevent...
551: New Website Examines Public Health Priorities, Advocacy Drives Alzheimer’s Policy
Nov. 27, 2023

551: New Website Examines Public Health Priorities, Advocacy Drives Alzheimer’s Policy

Dr. Marcus Plescia, chief medical officer, ASTHO, examines ASTHO’s new webpage with a collection of evidence-based technical packages covering key public health concerns; J.T. Lane, senior vice president, Population Health and Innovation, ASTHO...
549: Role of Schools in Preventing Teen Overdose, CDC Builds Outbreak Modeling Network
Nov. 21, 2023

549: Role of Schools in Preventing Teen Overdose, CDC Builds Outbreak Modeling Network

Dr. Lauren Tanz, an epidemiologist with the CDC, talks about the rising numbers of teen overdose deaths in the United States; Dr. Dylan George, director of the Center for Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics at the CDC, discusses the CDC’s creation of...
526: Youth Substance Use Interventions, PH Jobs Website Attracts Candidates
Oct. 18, 2023

526: Youth Substance Use Interventions, PH Jobs Website Attracts Candidates

Dr. Sarah Stoddard, a member of the Community Preventive Services Task Force with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, says the organization reviewed 60 studies to determine what can help prevent substance use among young people; Dr....
522: New Overdose Dashboard, Public Health Leadership Training
Oct. 12, 2023

522: New Overdose Dashboard, Public Health Leadership Training

Maria Sarabia, Assistant Commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Health, shares an overdose dashboard that clarifies the people most affected; Shannan Rome, Health Access Nurturing Development Services Manager at the Franklin County Health...
510: Harm Reduction Partnerships, AI in PH Comms
Sept. 25, 2023

510: Harm Reduction Partnerships, AI in PH Comms

Brandon Del Pozo, Assistant Professor of Medicine and Public Health at Brown University, explains that collaboration between public health, public safety, and harm reduction is needed to fully address public health needs; Antony Cousins, the Executive...
500: Xylazine Plan, Diverse Executives Address Equity
Sept. 11, 2023

500: Xylazine Plan, Diverse Executives Address Equity

Dr. Rahul Gupta, Director of National Drug Control Policy at the White House, outlines the federal government’s response to the threat of Xylazine; the 2024 Diverse Executives Leading in Public Health (DELPH) Program is accepting applications for...
494: Mapping Overdose Center Legislation, Overdose Prevention Work Demands Flexibility
Aug. 31, 2023

494: Mapping Overdose Center Legislation, Overdose Prevention Work Demands Flexibility

JoAnne McClure, ASTHO Senior Analyst for State Policy, explains an ASTHO webpage that tracks legislation to authorize overdose centers in some states; Dr. Laura Chisholm, Section Manager for Injury and Violence Prevention with the Oregon Health...
486: Over-the-Counter Naloxone, Hurricane Partnerships
Aug. 21, 2023

486: Over-the-Counter Naloxone, Hurricane Partnerships

Richa Ranade, ASTHO’s Senior Director of Overdose Prevention, says ASTHO’s policy statement on over-the-counter naloxone supports increasing access; Chris Medina, State Medical Operations Center Director at the Texas Department of State Health...
478: Mapping Opioid Response, Managing FTE Caps
Aug. 9, 2023

478: Mapping Opioid Response, Managing FTE Caps

Maggie Davis, ASTHO Director of State Health Policy, outlines ASTHO’s new Public Health Legal Mapping Center tool aimed to highlight policies that may prevent overdose; Liljana Baddour, ASTHO’s Senior Director for Workforce Development, says...
477: PH-HERO Set to Grow, Dialysis Patient Voices
Aug. 8, 2023

477: PH-HERO Set to Grow, Dialysis Patient Voices

Omar Khalid, ASTHO’s Director of Workforce Development, explains the expansion of ASTHO’s Public Health – Hope, Equity, Resilience, and Opportunity (PH-HERO) initiative; Erin Laird, ASTHO’s Director of Emerging Infections, says preventing...
474: Overdose Strategies, Pregnancy Risk Data
Aug. 3, 2023

474: Overdose Strategies, Pregnancy Risk Data

Victoria Pless, ASTHO’s Assistant Director of Social and Behavioral Health, explains recommendations states can use to reduce overdoses; Stephany Strahle, with ASTHO’s Family and Child Health team, says updating public health surveillance systems...
453: REPLAY: Dealing with Xylazine, Island Care for Veterans
July 5, 2023

453: REPLAY: Dealing with Xylazine, Island Care for Veterans

This special edition revisits Episode 386 of Public Health Review Morning Edition from March 28th.   Dr. Daniel Edney, State Health Officer for the Mississippi State Department of Health, discusses the dangers of Xylazine, a strong tranquilizer,...
407: Disaster Response Getting Better, Leadership Diversity
April 26, 2023

407: Disaster Response Getting Better, Leadership Diversity

Maggie Nilz, ASTHO’s Senior Analyst of Preparedness and Disability Integration, says preparedness is important to public health; the annual Preparedness Summit is ongoing in Atlanta; Dr. Kandi Fredere, Upstate Regional Health Director for the South...
368: Island Health Push, Ending the X Waiver
March 2, 2023

368: Island Health Push, Ending the X Waiver

Alex Wheatley, ASTHO Assistant Director of the Island Support Team, says there is an urgent need to approve agreements that continue funding for health programs in several island nations; Carolyn Mullen, ASTHO Senior Vice President for Government...
356: New York’s Opioid Partnerships, Arizona’s Mobile Vaccination Clinics
Feb. 13, 2023

356: New York’s Opioid Partnerships, Arizona’s Mobile Vaccination Clinics

Dr. Jim McDonald, New York State Acting Health Commissioner, says partnerships with people in local communities are key to the state's response to the opioid crisis; Siman Qaasim, Health Equity Administrator for the Arizona Department of Health...
354: Biden’s Opioid Message, Georgetown’s New Health Dean
Feb. 9, 2023

354: Biden’s Opioid Message, Georgetown’s New Health Dean

Richa Ranade, ASTHO's Senior Director for Overdose Prevention, says it's encouraging to hear President Joe Biden prioritize solutions to the opioid epidemic in his State of the Union address; Dr. Christopher King, the first dean of Georgetown...
349: Safe Drug Use Sites, Toxic Pandemic Stress
Feb. 2, 2023

349: Safe Drug Use Sites, Toxic Pandemic Stress

Julie Wernau, Health and Science Reporter at The Wall Street Journal, says drug use sites face many hurdles even if they have local permission to operate; Dr. Anne Zink, ASTHO President, tells the Associated Press that her members are anxious to...
348: WSJ on Fentanyl Dangers, COVID Emergency Ending
Feb. 1, 2023

348: WSJ on Fentanyl Dangers, COVID Emergency Ending

Julie Wernau, Health and Science Reporter at The Wall Street Journal, has been reporting on the opioid crisis for more than a year but says it’s still a difficult story to write; Andy Baker-White, ASTHO Senior Director of State Health Policy, says...
328: Opioids, Equity, and the Medicaid Cliff
Dec. 21, 2022

328: Opioids, Equity, and the Medicaid Cliff

Dr. Mark Levine, Vermont Department of Health's Commissioner of Health, discusses the opioid crisis in America and the policies his state has employed to save lives; Alicia Justice, ASTHO Senior Director of Programmatic Health Equity Initiatives and...
300: New Tool for Suicide, Overdose, ACEs
Nov. 8, 2022

300: New Tool for Suicide, Overdose, ACEs

Caitlin Langhorne Griffith, ASTHO’s Director of Behavioral Health, unveils a new public health tool known as SPACECAT, or Suicide, Overdose and Adverse Childhood Experiences Prevention Capacity Assessment Tool; Talyah Sands, ASTHO Director of Health...
299: Pediatric Respiratory Cases Cause Concern
Nov. 7, 2022

299: Pediatric Respiratory Cases Cause Concern

Dr. Anne Zink, ASTHO President, releases a statement addressing the response to a spike in respiratory infections; Dr. Jose Romero, Director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the CDC, addresses the latest concerns...