@reginalabelle.bsky.social
Professor of addiction policy at Georgetown University. Former Biden and Obama Administration official. https://substack.com/@reginalabelle?r=h9gu&utm_medium=ios
Last week's O'Neill Institute newsletter showcased work by faculty members including @reginalabelle.bsky.social, @michelebgoodwin.bsky.social, and @katie-keith.bsky.social. Subscribe here to stay up to date on our faculty's work: oneill.law.georgetown.edu
Grateful to Science Politics and @emendenhall.bsky.social for publishing my piece on how the next Congress can move forward, in a bipartisan way, to address untreated addiction and overdose.
Emily Mendenhall@emendenhall.bsky.social · 2w agoToday Regina LaBelle writes in Science Politics that incoming lawmakers have an opportunity to build an addiction response that is accountable, effective, and prepared for an evolving public health landscape. sciencepolitics.org/2026/07/23/t...
A history of medetomidine trends in the NY drug supply and an overview of public health responses: Emergence of Medetomidine in New York’s Illicit Drug Supply | NEJM Evidence @nejm.org @cidrap.bsky.social -- evidence.nejm.org/doi/full/10....
Emergence of Medetomidine in New York’s Illicit Drug Supply
New York State and New York City health departments have closely monitored the emergence of medetomidine, a sedative that can cause prolonged sedation and a complex withdrawal syndrome, in the illi...
evidence.nejm.org
The long saga with Purdue Pharma is about to end and $7B will flow to governments and a small % to individual victims. The federal government will receive $225 million which will be sent to the General Treasury. abcnews.com/US/wireStory...
Purdue Pharma to be sentenced in criminal opioids case, allowing settlement money to flow
A judge is expected to sentence OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma to forfeit $225 million to the U.S. government
abcnews.com
Opioid overdose deaths in the US have fallen dramatically, according to the latest CDC data. What factors are driving this welcome downturn? ja.ma/3N5FAXY
Why Are Opioid Deaths Declining?
This Medical News article discusses new research on factors contributing to a dramatic decrease in drug overdose deaths in the US since 2023.
ja.ma
Regina LaBelle in @sciencepolitics.bsky.social: "The U.S. cannot stop rogue actors by itself when transnational criminal organizations operate w/o regard to borders & across numerous criminal enterprises...Countering TCOs relies upon international cooperation." sciencepolitics.org/2026/02/02/t...
The Story Linking Migrants to U.S. Fentanyl Deaths Is Powerful. But It Misses the Real Solutions. - Science Politics
Public health investments and international cooperation to stop rogue actors would better address the overdose crisis.
sciencepolitics.org
Honored to collaborate with @reginalabelle.bsky.social on a look at the state of policy-relevant substance use data in the nation for @brookings.edu: www.brookings.edu/articles/the...
The cost of chaos: A cracking windshield on substance use in the US | Brookings
Current conditions create incremental cracks in the national substance use windshield, which must be repaired as quickly as possible.
brookings.edu
Last week, the Trump administration cancelled >$2B in mental health + addiction treatment funds. Only massive, rapid pushback caused them to reverse the decision. But these programs remain at risk. So Grant Witness is now tracking SAMHSA grants. What found so far: grant-witness.us/posts/2026-0...
Grant Witness is tracking SAMHSA Grant Terminations – Grant Witness
grant-witness.us
I’m honored to join the @oneillinstitute.bsky.social's Center for Addiction and Public Policy, Taleed El-Sabawi, Regina LaBelle, and other colleagues for the "Winter Institute on Addiction Policy and the Law” CLE event on February 9-10, 2026. Register (zoom or live): web.cvent.com/event/e921a3...
Reversal by White House of addiction and mental health grant cuts. rollcall.com/2026/01/14/h...
White House reverses $2 billion cut to mental health, addiction grants
Many of the affected grant programs had bipartisan support and President Donald Trump has supported them in the past.
rollcall.com
The military removal of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on US drug charges comes after Trump has freed other figures connected to narcotics trafficking. n.pr/4skk4yB
Maduro's ouster on drug charges comes as Trump lets others free
The military removal of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on US drug charges comes after Trump has freed other figures connected to narcotics trafficking.
n.pr
Venezuela is on the US list of major drug trafficking countries. But it’s on this list because it’s a transit country for cocaine trafficking - not a fentanyl producer. See the State Department 2025 report www.state.gov/wp-content/u...
state.gov
The children left behind. The Opioid Crisis Never Ended. It Was Inherited by the Children. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Opinion | In Appalachia, Children Inherited the Opioid Crisis (Gift Article)
The pain of drug addiction continues to course through towns like Clarksburg, W.Va., where many babies are born withdrawing and have to be taken from their parents.
nytimes.com
More on fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction by David Ovalle of @washingtonpost.com with a range of commentaries from parents looking for solutions to doctors and academics. www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/...
Trump declared fentanyl a weapon of mass destruction. What does it mean?
The declaration of fentanyl a weapon of mass destruction is the latest move by President Donald Trump casting the nation’s deadly drug crisis as a national security issue.
washingtonpost.com
In light of the President’s Executive Order today on fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction, I’m reupping the piece we wrote about the issue - oneill.law.georgetown.edu/wp-content/u... The overdose epidemic demands serious responses - this isn’t one.
oneill.law.georgetown.edu
Blowing up boats won’t address the larger issue of money laundering that fuels transnational crime - good piece in The NYTimes about the ease of using stable coins for money laundering amidst lax regulation www.nytimes.com/2025/12/07/t...
How a Cryptocurrency Helps Criminals Launder Money and Evade Sanctions
nytimes.com
Now that the Purdue bankruptcy is over, the federal government will receive a $225 million payment as a result of DOJ’s 2018 settlement w/the company. That $ should not go to the general treasury but should be dedicated for treatment and other health services. apnews.com/article/purd...
Here's what's in the opioid settlement against OxyContin maker Purdue and the Sackler family
A bankruptcy court judge has approved the settlement of thousands of lawsuits against Purdue Pharma, maker of the powerful prescription painkiller OxyContin.
apnews.com
This is the same Administration that pardoned the Silk Road founder, an online dark web drug trafficking site linked to 6 deaths. This is performative, likely illegal, & will do little to stop trafficking. U.S. kills 3 in strike on alleged drug boat from Venezuela, Trump says wapo.st/4nCzbQN
U.S. kills 3 in strike on alleged drug boat from Venezuela, Trump says
The president also signaled that his administration was preparing to take military action against Latin American cartels that move narcotics over land.
wapo.st
While walking away from anti-money laundering efforts, the Administration is relying more on military tactics in its counter narcotics efforts - a short sighted strategy. www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
U.S. kills 11 in strike on alleged drug vessel from Venezuela, Trump says
The attack is a dramatic escalation that coincides with the administration’s growing counternarcotics focus and its intensifying feud with the Venezuelan leader, Nicolas Maduro.
washingtonpost.com
The vast majority of firearms seized in Mexico that can be traced, originate from the US www.nytimes.com/video/world/... www.nytimes.com/video/world/...
Video: Mexico’s Cartels Are Using Military Weapons
Recent attacks on villages in Mexico’s western state of Michoacán reveal the cartels’ growing paramilitary-style power, using drones, I.E.D.s and other weapons of war. Paulina Villegas examines the af...
nytimes.com
@reginalabelle.bsky.social will join TFAH on July 30 at 2 PM ET to discuss our Pain in the Nation report. Register today bit.ly/PitN2025Webi...
New commentary out from @brookings.edu - always great to collaborate with @holtgrave-health.bsky.social Progress under threat: The future of overdose prevention in the United States www.brookings.edu/articles/pro...
Progress under threat: The future of overdose prevention in the United States | Brookings
Overdose prevention stands at an important crossroads as the Trump administration and Congress propose and implement policies that endanger recent progress.
brookings.edu
Important perspective from Brandon del Pozo about the need for law enforcement to show their faces and identify themselves in a democratic society. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...
Show Us Your Face
The federal government should prohibit the wearing of masks by ICE agents and require them to properly identify themselves.
theatlantic.com
“He was dirty,” Mr. Musto said of the Salvadoran president. “He was corrupt. And now he’s sitting next to the president in the Oval Office and he’s got prime access to the leader of the free world.” www.nytimes.com/2025/06/30/u...
Trump Vowed to Dismantle MS-13. His Deal With Bukele Threatens That Effort.
nytimes.com
VEASEY: You've credited the 12 steps in your recovery. What's step 4? RFK JR: Making a fearless inventory VEASEY: Of ourselves. Do you remember step 12? RFK JR: We try to help other addicts VEASEY: Does cutting off treatment from people still suffering align with step 4 or step 12?
Excellent questioning by Congressman Marc Veasey on HHS’s proposed cuts to SAMHSA. The proposed HHS budget calls for a $500M cut to grant funding for mental health & substance use, cuts that will devastate the nation’s addiction response. youtu.be/jR4VVrIvIOQ?...
'This Isn't A Budget, It's A Death Sentence': Marc Veasey Doesn't Hold Back In RFK Condemnation
YouTube video by Forbes Breaking News
youtu.be
Overdose deaths of Black Bostonians dropped significantly in 2024. Here’s why www.masslive.com/news/2025/06...
Overdose deaths of Black Bostonians dropped significantly in 2024. Here’s why
Drug overdose deaths among Black Bostonians fell by nearly 60% last year. It's an achievement to be recognized, but much work remains, community health workers say.
masslive.com
