Alcohol

The purpose of this report was to assess immediate and sustained changes in overall illicit substance ingestion rates among children younger than six before and during the COVID-19 pandemic and to examine changes by substance type, including amphetamines, benzodiazepines, cannabis, cocaine, ethanol, and, opioids. Researchers concluded that there was a sustained increase in illicit substance ingestion during the pandemic and that additional studies are needed to contextualize these findings in the setting of pandemic-related stress....

Recovery residences provide a sober, safe, and healthy living environment that promotes recovery from alcohol and other drug use and associated problems. These residences are commonly referred to by a number of names, including sober living houses, sober living environments, and recovery homes, and their primary purpose is to provide a home-like environment for individuals in recovery from substance use disorder to help sustain that recovery....

A newly released report from the United States Department of Justice indicates that among all state and federal prisoners, nearly four in 10 self-reported using drugs and three in 10 self-reported consuming alcohol, at the time of the offense for which they are currently serving a sentence in a correctional facility. Many of those individuals meet the clinical definition of having a substance or alcohol use disorder - 40% for substance use and just over 20% for alcohol. Of that population, 33% of state and 46% of federal prisoners, who met the criteria for having a substance or alcohol use disorder, reported participating in a treatment program after their admission to a correctional facility....

LAPPA’s Model Expanding Access to Peer Recovery Support Services Act was written in consultation with a host of subject matter experts including peer support workers and credentialing professionals. The model provides a legislative framework for implementing a responsive and cohesive peer support worker credentialing program and offers policymakers in jurisdictions with established peer support programs dynamic strategies to improve their existing peer support credentialing process. ...

Opened on Oct. 1, 2018, the mission of the Austin (Travis County, Texas) Sobering Center is “to enhance public health and public safety by providing an alternative to the emergency room and jail for publicly intoxicated individuals to sober up and, when appropriate, provide a safe environment to initiative recovery.” Only Austin’s first responders (e.g., law enforcement officers and emergency medical technicians) are permitted to bring people under the influence of any substance except PCP to withdraw at the Center....