Health officials unveil ambitious addiction initiative

Top federal health officials have outlined their plans for a $350 million study that aims to cut overdose deaths by 40 percent in three years in select communities and establish an integrated model for tackling addiction that can be applied nationally. As part of “the HEALing Communities Study,” researchers from the University of Kentucky, Ohio State University, Boston Medical Center, and Columbia University have received grants to study which combination of interventions works best in more than a dozen communities in each of their states. The project will focus on expanding the availability of naloxone, routing people into evidence-based treatment, and improving pain care. “We can start saving lives now, and we can do it in a way that will provide dividends for communities everywhere,” HHS Secretary Alex Azar said.