Overdose Prevention Episodes

Jan. 5, 2024

574: Tracking Respiratory Illness, Congressional Deadlines Loom

Dr. Marcus Plescia, ASTHO chief medical officer, is tracking reports of respiratory illness across the U.S.; Carolyn Mullen, ASTHO senior vice president for Government Affairs and Public Relations, discusses a federal fundin…
Jan. 3, 2024

572: How Data Impacts Birth Defects, Parents and Teachers Can Help Prevent STIs

Dr. Karen Remley, ASTHO alum and director for the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities at the CDC, says early detection of birth defects is a focus in January; Dr. Anne Zink, ASTHO immediate past p…
Dec. 18, 2023

566: Policies to Curb Sexually Transmitted Infections, Xylazine Regulation and Testing

Dr. Anne Zink, ASTHO immediate past president and chief medical officer for the Alaska Department of Health, says policies can help address the fact that the number of babies born with syphilis is ten times higher than in 20…
Dec. 14, 2023

564: Flavored Tobacco Bans and Pricing Strategies, Respiratory Disease Guidance

Dr. Barbara Wallace, director of the Division of Chronic Disease Prevention at the New York State Department of Health, discusses various strategies to curb tobacco use; Dr. Marcus Plescia, ASTHO chief medical officer, worri…
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…
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 Departme…
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 a…
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 a…
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, discus…
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 a…
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 Fra…
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; An…
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 acce…
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 wi…
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 Departm…