Medication

A new policy brief uses psychotropic medications as a proxy for mental illness, and finds that, despite criminal justice reforms in the state, the population of mentally ill inmates in jails is growing.

According to the people who have tried to do it.

Medicare patients in the state appear to be much less likely to overuse problematic prescription drugs, including opioid pain medications and antibiotics, than people in the mainland United States.

Some Medicare beneficiaries are being prescribed opioids by 10 or more doctors, or are filling prescriptions for more than 1,000 pills a month.

The more money doctors receive from drug and medical device companies, the more brand-name drugs they tend to prescribe, a new analysis shows. Even a meal can make a difference.

As presidential candidates focus more on drug prices, new data from the website Iodine shows that generics scored highest among users in three popular drug categories.

A bill that would speed up approval for medications and medical devices shows how a major initiative can get traction even in the midst of Washington gridlock—but critics say all the lobbying is drowning out some warnings about patient safety.

After an investigation, Canada’s top health agency considers whether to lower the maximum recommended daily dose of the active ingredient in Tylenol and other painkillers.

New data on drug and device company payments to doctors largely excludes nurse practitioners and physician assistants, though they play an ever-larger role in health care. One advanced-practice nurse pleaded guilty last month to taking drug company kickbacks.

Hepatitis C is common behind bars, but sick prisoners aren’t getting treatment.

Too often, Americans with painful medical conditions who misuse pain pills like Oxycontin are denied further treatment and even prosecuted. There are more effective, enlightened responses—as the U.K. has shown for decades.

A new study in mice shows that the antidepressant Paxil may be a step toward a cure for heart failure.

Medicare gives itself the power to ban physicians if they prescribe medications in abusive ways.

Safety valves that cost pennies per bottle could save thousands of kids from being rushed to emergency rooms each year. A doctor has campaigned to have the devices added to all liquid medicines, but so far he’s had limited success.

The failure to track doctors who shun cheaper generics racks up huge costs for taxpayers in Medicare Part D, which fills one of every four U.S. prescriptions.

Researchers find that a higher proportion of seniors are prescribed antidepressants, dementia drugs, and other medications in some parts of the country than others.

Medicine does not always have the luxury of waiting until the mountains of needed research on any given problem are completed centuries from now. Physicians are tasked with treating real-world suffering today.

Most Americans know that overdosing can be dangerous but many wrongly think it’s safe to mix drugs containing acetaminophen, a nationwide poll found.