opioids
Arrest made in connection with overdose death of Douglas County resident
Submitted by paula on Thu, 01/07/2021 - 11:17am
DOUGLAS COUNTY, Nev. - A three-week long investigation into the death of a 35-year old Gardnerville man has led to the arrest of Brittany Miller of Dayton, Nev.
On December 19, 2020, Jason Kaspian was found deceased due to a suspected overdose from an opioid-based substance in his Vista Grande Drive apartment. An investigation by the Douglas County Sheriff's Office (DCSO) into Kaspian's death lead them to the person they believe sold him the controlled substance.
El Dorado County Opioid Coalition launches new campaign - Your Pain is Real. So Are the Risks
Submitted by paula on Tue, 07/21/2020 - 11:50am
The El Dorado County Opioid Coalition (EDCOC) has launched its new opioid prevention public education campaign, "Your Pain is Real. So Are the Risks.”
The EDCOC works to prevent opioid addiction and overdose in El Dorado County through its treatment, safe prescribing, and naloxone distribution programs and has now started working with the California Department of Public Health (CDPH).
Three near-fatal overdoses in Douglas County - Counterfeit Percocet pills with fentanyl
Submitted by paula on Wed, 05/13/2020 - 2:33pm
DOUGLAS COUNTY, Nev. - In the past 72 hours, three people have had near-fatal overdoses in Douglas County due to fentanyl-laced counterfeit pills being ingested. Deputies were able to quickly administer Naloxone to save the victims.
The Douglas County Sheriff's Office (DCSO) warned the public two months ago regarding the counterfeit Percocet pills with fentanyl being sold in the area.
Naloxone saving lives locally and across the country
Submitted by paula on Wed, 05/15/2019 - 1:49pm
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Naloxone, a medication designed to rapidly reverse opioid and heroin overdoses, is carried on police and deputy vehicles, ambulances and fire engines, giving first responders the chance to save lives. The problem of these overdoses is so widespread most medics and ambulances have administered the medication dozens of times, even in South Lake Tahoe and the surrounding counties.
16th annual Drug Store Project in South Lake Tahoe
Submitted by paula on Mon, 04/01/2019 - 7:22pm
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - On Tuesday, April 2, 325 6th graders from South Tahoe Middle School, Zephyr Cove Elementary School and home-schooled youth, will spend the day at Lake Tahoe Community College going through the 16th annual Drug Store Project.
Since 2004, middle school students in the Lake Tahoe Unified School District (LTUSD) have gone through the Drug Store Project (DSP), a day-long comprehensive drug prevention program designed to educate youth about the dangers of substance use and abuse.
Barton Wellness Lecture: The Opioid Epidemic and help that is available
Submitted by paula on Wed, 02/27/2019 - 11:16am
Event Date:
February 28, 2019 - 6:00pm
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Understand more about the opioid epidemic at the next Barton Health Wellness Lecture on Thursday, February 28 from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Barton Center for Orthopedics & Wellness, 2170B South Avenue, South Lake Tahoe.
Dr. Matthew Wonnacott will lead the lecture and cover topics including how opioids became an epidemic and what kind of help is available locally for those fighting an addiction to the drug.
Health assessment of South Lake Tahoe shows mental health and substance abuse at top of needs list
Submitted by paula on Sun, 12/30/2018 - 11:48pm
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - A study on the health needs of the South Lake Tahoe community has once again put mental health and mental disorders at the top of the list, followed by substance abuse, and access to healthcare services.
Every three years Barton Health conducts a Community Health Needs Assessment to identity the key health issues facing the area. They use a systematic, data-driven process to determine the health status, concerns, and needs of residents in the South Tahoe community.
The 2018 results are a follow-up to similar studies completed in 2012 and 2015.
Many area emergency personnel carry Naloxone for overdoses
Submitted by paula on Tue, 06/12/2018 - 4:36pm
The Douglas County Sheriff's Office (DCSO) is joining the South Lake Tahoe Fire and Lake Valley Fire medics in having their personnel carrying medication used to block the effects of opioids. Narcan (commercial name for Naloxone) can be given to persons suffering from suspected or accidental opioid overdoses at the earliest possible time to minimize overdosing.
El Dorado County sues opioid manufacturers and distributors
Submitted by paula on Thu, 05/10/2018 - 9:22pm
El Dorado County has filed a lawsuit against opioid manufacturers and distributors for creating the opioid epidemic in El Dorado County, joining a consortium of 30 California counties to do so. The County has retained the national law firm of Baron & Budd and a joint venture of law firms to represent its interests, seeking an abatement remedy in addition to legal damages for taxpayer money spent providing social resources in response to the crisis.
Drug Take Back Day locations in South Lake Tahoe and Zephyr Cove
Submitted by paula on Thu, 04/05/2018 - 1:32pm
Event Date:
April 28, 2018 - 10:00am
South Lake Tahoe and Douglas County will be joining thousands of communities across the United States when they participate in the Drug Enforcement Administration “National Drug Take Back" on Saturday, April 28.
Nevada doctor arrested on distribution of opioids and health care fraud charges
Submitted by paula on Tue, 12/12/2017 - 11:39am
Dr. Devendra I. Patel, aka Devendrakumar I. Patel, 58, of Elko, Nev., was arrested Tuesday on 39 charges of unlawful distribution of prescriptions opioids and Medicaid fraud.
Patel is charged with 36-counts of distribution of controlled substances such as oxycodone and hydrocodone, and three-counts of health care fraud. He is a cardiologist at his medical practice, Northeastern Nevada Cardiology. The statutory maximum penalty for distribution of a controlled substance is 10 years in prison and the maximum penalty for health care fraud is 10 years in prison.
Several pounds of prescriptions gathered during area Drug Take Back Day
Submitted by paula on Mon, 05/08/2017 - 9:36pm
Law enforcement agencies and volunteers around the country participated in Drug Take Back Day on April 29, taking tons of medications off of the streets.
Both Douglas County and the City of South Lake Tahoe took part. The Douglas County Sheriff's Office had their Citizen Patrol volunteers staff five locations both at the lake and in the valley. They didn't measure the drugs in pounds, but in box fulls.
Staff was able to turn in 18 boxes of medications, which was more than last October’s collection.
National Drug Take Back Day in South Lake Tahoe and Douglas County
Submitted by paula on Mon, 04/24/2017 - 4:37pm
Event Date:
April 29, 2017 (All day)
Thousands of communities across the United States will participate in the Drug Enforcement Administration “National Drug Take Back” day scheduled for Saturday, April 29 in South Lake Tahoe, Zephyr Cove, and spots in the Carson Valley.
46,000 people a year die from drug overdoses and more than half of those die from prescription opioid overdoses. Four out of five new users of heroin began with abusing prescription opioids.
CVS now sells overdose reversal drug over the counter in Nevada and California
Submitted by paula on Thu, 12/15/2016 - 10:50pm
CVS announced today that it will now sell the opioid overdose antidote naloxone without a prescription in all of their Nevada locations. This brings the total to 37 states where the drugstore chains sells naloxone over-the-counter, including California.
Shared pain pills fueling opioid epidemic
Submitted by paula on Thu, 06/16/2016 - 11:13pm
As lawmakers grapple with how best to combat the nation’s prescription painkiller abuse crisis, a recent survey is shedding light on how patients who get these medications — drugs such as OxyContin, methadone or Vicodin — sometimes share or mishandle them.
Will buprenorphine and probuphine be the end to opioid addiction?
Submitted by paula on Mon, 06/06/2016 - 7:18pm
Headlines, both regionally and nationally are full of the message: Opioid addiction is sweeping the country and its out of control. With the death of musical artist Prince of an opioid overdose, the stigma of the addiction to strong prescription pain pills has been erased. It isn't a poor person's problem, it isn't an unemployed person's problem, it isn't a metropolitan problem. It is a problem in South Lake Tahoe, Reno, the west and the whole country.
Substance abuse in South Lake Tahoe: HEROIN
Submitted by paula on Wed, 11/04/2015 - 5:32pm
South Tahoe Now will be presenting a series on increasing drug use among children and adults in South Lake Tahoe, current trends and solutions. This is the first part in the series: Heroin.
It is euphoria, sensory overload and beyond any pleasure you know. That is the beginning, and the average heroin user will spend years trying to find the same feeling as that first high, ended only by death, or seeking help to rid themselves of the dark beast of addiction. Those are the only two options.
Prescription Drug Take Back Day in Meyers on July 12
Submitted by paula on Fri, 06/26/2015 - 11:37pm
Event Date:
July 12, 2015 - 12:00pm
Prescription Drugs are potentially dangerous when they fall into the wrong hands. The abuse of certain prescription drugs— opioids, central nervous system (CNS) depressants, and stimulants—can lead to a variety of adverse health effects, including addiction.
To get unwanted, unused and expired prescription drugs off the street, the El Dorado County Sheriff's Department will be holding a Drug Tahoe Back Day in the county on Sunday, July 12, 2015 from 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. at several locations.
