Mike Bloom On Pasadena Recover Center
November 10th, 2011Seven Counties Designated as High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas
October 24th, 2011
Counties in Four States to Receive Additional Federal Support to Combat Drug Trafficking; ONDCP Awards $10.6 Million in Resources to Target Drug Trafficking Networks and Prevent Drug Use Before it Start
Washington, D.C. –Today, Gil Kerlikowske, Director of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) announced the designation of seven new counties in Florida, Maryland, Ohio, and Virginia as High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA). The designation will enable the counties to receive Federal resources to further the coordination and development of drug control efforts among Federal, State, local, and tribal law enforcement officers and allow local agencies to benefit from ongoing HIDTA initiatives working to reduce drug use and its consequences across the United States.
The newly designated counties are:
“Drugs place enormous obstacles in the way of our work to raise healthy children, maintain strong families, support economic prosperity, and protect communities from crime,” said Kerlikowske. “The innovative initiatives and support provided by the HIDTA program will play an important role in helping local authorities combat drug related violence and crime. Smart enforcement efforts like these serve as a key component of our balanced approach to drug control and complements the Obama Administration’s emphasis on preventing drug use before it starts through education and providing treatment to addicts.”
In addition to designating new counties, ONDCP also announced $10.6 million in discretionary funding to 27 HIDTAs to enhance targeted enforcement and drug prevention efforts nationwide. These resources will support domestic highway enforcement, combat the diversion of prescription drugs, target domestic marijuana cultivation, enhance parcel interdiction investigations, implement Native American initiatives, and provide funding for drug prevention and education activities at the local level.
Created by Congress in 1988, the HIDTA program provides assistance to Federal, State, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug trafficking regions of the United States.Law enforcement organizations within HIDTAs assess drug-trafficking problems and design specific initiatives to decrease the production, transportation, distribution, and chronic use of drugs and money laundering. There are currently 28 HIDTAs, which include approximately 16 percent of all counties in the United States and 60 percent of the U.S. population. HIDTA-designated counties are located in 46 states, as well as in Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the District of Columbia.
Overall drug use in the United States has dropped substantially over the past thirty years. In response to comprehensive efforts to address drug use at the local, state, Federal, and international levels, the rate of Americans using illicit drugs today is roughly one third the rate it was in the late 70s. More recently, cocaine use has dropped by 40 percent, and methamphetamine use in America has been cut by half. In Fiscal year 2011, the Obama Administration spent over $10 billion on drug education and treatment and over $9 billion on drug-related law enforcement efforts in the U.S.
For More information about the HIDTA program and ONDCP visit:
Polo in the Palisades Event for Pasadena Recovery Center
October 17th, 2011The Pasadena Recovery Center was proud to host a table at the Promises Foundation, Polo in the Palisades Event, this past Sunday. Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew Counselor, Bob Forest, was one of the honorees of the event hosted by Tom Arnold. Other honorees included Roger Canevari, Lia Iacocca Assad and Victor Assad. The PRC was represented well by Co-Founder Mike Bloom, Carolyn Krumian and Pat Kelly being in attendance. While other guests of the PRC table consisted of: Elisa Hallerman of Hally Life, Valerie Allen of Valerie Allen PR, Kelly Johns and James Moorehead of Renew Magazine, Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew Counselor Jennifer Gimenez, and Judge Mitchell Block.
White House Drug Policy Office to join Mothers Against Drunk Driving to Release New Data on Traffic Fatalities; Announce Partnership and Resources to Combat Emerging Threat of Drugged Driving
October 12th, 2011
White House Drug Policy Office to join Mothers Against Drunk Driving to Release New Data on Traffic Fatalities; Announce Partnership and Resources to Combat Emerging Threat of Drugged DrivingNew Data to Reveal Details of Fatally Injured Drivers Who Tested Positive for Drugs; MADD to Announce Plans to Address Drugged Driving
Washington, D.C. – Gil Kerlikowske, Director of National Drug Control Policy will join Jan Withers, National President of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), and victims of drugged driving at a news conference to release an analysis of the National Highway and Safety Administration’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS). The analysis will reveal demographic details of fatality injured drivers who tested positive for drugs. Additionally, in light of the emerging threat to public safety from drugged driving, MADD will announce plans to address the issues of poly-abuse (both drugs and alcohol) and drugged driving.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving was founded by a mother whose daughter was killed by a drunk driver, and it is now the nation’s largest nonprofit working to protect families from drunk driving and underage drinking, while also supporting victims of drunk and drugged driving.
The Office of National Drug Control Policy seeks to foster healthy individuals and safe communities by effectively leading the Nation’s effort to reduce drug use and its consequences. For more information about the Office of National Drug Control Policy and it programs visit:
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Dr. Drew Weighs In On MJ Death Trial
October 5th, 2011
seated in the Michael Jackson death trial. They will decide whether Dr. Conrad Murray is guilty of involuntary manslaughter. He’s accused of administering a fatal dose of a surgical anesthetic to Michael Jackson.
The focus of the trial … How did the King of Pop really die? It’s a question the world’s been asking for over two years. We’ll be covering this trial gavel-to-gavel. With my background in medicine and addiction, I’ll be sharing a point of view that you won’t hear anywhere else.
In my opinion, having a personal physician is a terrible idea for any celebrity because there are systems in place to take care of patients properly. To have a personal physician for an addict or somebody with psychiatric problems is a recipe for very serious trouble.
I don’t know why Dr. Murray felt that it was appropriate to be the sole caretaker of a complicated patient like Michael Jackson. That’s something that should never be done.
I actually feel very sorry for Dr. Murray. I think he got himself into a situation where he was way over his head – into an area that he truly didn’t understand.
Dr. Murray’s attorney Edward Chernoff claims that Dr. Murray did not know what trouble MJ was in when he accepted this job. I have no doubt that’s true, but once he got in there and discovered what he was dealing with, he should have assembled a team. That was his responsibility.
Murray’s attorney also said that Murray wanted to help him get off propofol to sleep.
Propofol is a short-acting barbiturate-like sedative that we use in emergency rooms or ICUs. It’s something I’ve never seen outside of a hospital. It’s not a typical drug of addiction because no one can get access to it.
I want to make something clear. This is not about sleeping. This is about drug withdrawal. Insomnia is a symptom, not a diagnosis. There is no way that Jackson could have been taking what he took the night he died and tolerated that without having had tolerance to those substances.
The combination of drugs and the doses of those drugs and the route of administration would be enough to put a dozen people to sleep for a week.
I could see no evidence that Jackson’s substance use was being dealt with – and there MJ was about to go on a strenuous tour.
I have a lot more to say about this case. Join me weeknights at 9 p.m. ET on HLN as we look deeper into the behaviors involved in the trial of Dr. Conrad Murray.
Posted by: HLN Host Dr. Drew Pinsky
Statement from White House Drug Policy Director Kerlikowske on the Results of the 2010 National Survey on Drug Use and Health
September 8th, 2011EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT
OFFICE OF NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL POLICY
Washington, DC 20503
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Thursday, September 8, 2011
CONTACT:
ONDCP Public Affairs: 202-395-6618
MediaInquiry@ondcp.eop.gov
Statement from White House Drug Policy Director Kerlikowske on the Results of the 2010 National Survey on Drug Use and Health
Washington, D.C. – Gil Kerlikowske, Director of National Drug Control Policy, released the following statement regarding the results of the 2010 National Survey on Drug Use and Health:
“Drugs place enormous obstacles in the way of our work to raise healthy children, maintain strong families, support economic prosperity, and protect communities from crime. I am encouraged there were no significant increases in drug use over the past year. However, today’s survey also shows that drug use in America remains at unacceptable levels.
Since day one, the Obama Administration has been laser focused on applying sound, research-based drug policies geared toward protecting Americans from the public health and safety threats drugs pose. As someone who has spent their entire career in law enforcement, I know we cannot arrest our way out of the drug problem. That’s why our policies are now based upon the recognition that drug addiction is a disease that can be successfully prevented and treated. The tragic wreckage wrought by drug use can and should be prevented before it becomes a criminal justice or public health emergency. That is why all of us – parents, community groups, government, the private sector, and law enforcement – have a shared responsibility to understand the scope of our drug problem and act now to educate young people about the harms caused by drug use.
Smart law enforcement efforts will always play a vital role in combating drug related violence and crime. But the days of treating drug use as exclusively a law enforcement only issue are long gone.”
Key facts:
The rate of overall drug use in America has fallen by roughly one-third since 1979.
There were no statistically significant increases in the use of any illegal drugs over the past year (2009 – 2010).
However, over the past two years (2008-2010) the rate of marijuana use increased significantly, driving up overall rates of illicit drug use.
Between 2008 and 2010, there was also a 43 percent increase in illicit drug use among Hispanic boys and a 42 percent increase among African American teen girls.
In FY2011, the United States spent $10.4 billion on drug education and treatment compared to $9.2 billion on domestic law enforcement.
For more information on National efforts to reduce drug use and its consequences visit: www.WhiteHouse.gov/ONDCP
The Office of National Drug Control Policy seeks to foster healthy individuals and safe communities by effectively leading the Nation’s effort to reduce drug use and its consequences.
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NATIONAL ALCOHOL AND DRUG ADDICTION RECOVERY MONTH
September 6th, 2011NATIONAL ALCOHOL AND DRUG ADDICTION RECOVERY MONTH, 2011
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA A PROCLAMATION
Recovering from addiction to alcohol and other drugs takes strength, faith, and commit- ment. Men and women in recovery showcase the power each of us holds to transform ourselves, our families, and our communities. As people share their stories and celebrate the transformative power of recovery, they also help dispel myths and stigmas surround- ing substance abuse and offer hope for lifestyles free from alcohol and other drugs.
This month and throughout the year, we must promote recovery and support the growth of healthy, resilient individuals and families in the United States. Today, alcohol and other drugs threaten the future of millions of Americans. Abuse of prescription medication has reached epidemic levels, drunk and drugged driving pose significant threats to public safety, and individuals in recovery continue to confront barriers to full participation in our society. My Administration is committed to reducing substance abuse, and this year we released our 2011 National Drug Control Strategy, which supports successful, longterm recoveries through research, education, increased access to treatment, and community- based recovery support.
As a Nation, we must strive to promote second chances and recognize each individual’s ability to overcome adversity. We laud and support the millions of Americans in recovery from substance abuse, their loved ones, and the communities that help them sustain recovery, while encouraging those in need to seek help. As we celebrate National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month, we pay tribute to the transforming power of recovery, which will continue to heal individuals and communities across our country.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority invested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 2011 as National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month. I call upon the people of the United States to observe this month with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirtyfirst day of August, in the year of our Lord two thousand eleven, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-sixth.
BARACK OBAMA
Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew Season 5 Finale Sunday, August 21st
August 18th, 2011A 4-Part Special, “Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew: Seasons 1-4 Revisited” Will Premiere In the Fall
LOS ANGELES, Aug. 16, 2011 /NEWS.GNOM.ES/ — As one of the most buzzed about seasons of “Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew” draws to an end Dr Drew, Bob and Shelly have a lot of trepidation about the cast as they ready themselves to leave the safe confines of the rehab facility and reenter a world full of the temptations that brought them there. The end of in-patient treatment is just the beginning of their long roads to continued sobriety. Season five of “Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew” winds down asthe finale airs Sunday, August 21st at 9pm*.
If you’ve been wondering how all of the ‘celebrity rehabbers’ from past seasons have been doing with their sobriety, VH1 will air “Celebrity Rehab Revisited” – five, one-hour retrospectives of the series. “Celebrity Rehab Revisited” will serve as “where are they now” specials with Dr. Drew and his head councilor Bob Forrest looking back on all five seasons of Celebrity Rehab. These specials will include visits with former patients to see where they are now in their fight for sobriety. We will see some patients achieving incredible success and living fulfilling lives, and others continuing their struggle to maintain sobriety outside the safety of rehab.
First up is “Celebrity Rehab with Dr Drew Season 5 Revisited,” a two-part special that will premiere on September 4 and 11 at 10pm*. Seasons 1-4 are set to premiere in the fall starting with season 1 on Wednesday, November 30th followed by seasons 2, 3, and 4.
- Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew Season 5 Revisited – September 4 & 11 at 10pm
- Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew Season 1 Revisited – November 30
- Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew Season 2 Revisited – December 7
- Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew Season 3 Revisited – December 14
- Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew Season 4 Revisited – December 21
Dr. Drew is the host of the nationally syndicated late night radio show Loveline as well as a respected practicing MD, board certified in internal and addiction medicine, who is staff at Huntington Hospital and assistant clinical professor of KECK USC School of Medicine. Additionally, he is hosting a new primetime show on HLN called “Dr. Drew” and will also be hosting a daytime talk show “Dr. Drew’s Lifechangers” on the CW premiering September 19th. He is the author of the New York Times best seller The Mirror Effect: How Celebrity Narcissism is Seducing America (Harper Collins) and Cracked: Putting Broken Lives Together Again (Harper-Collins.) Dr. Drew co-authored the first academic study on celebrities and narcissism that was published in the Journal of Research in Personality (Elsevier) in September 2006, and is the first systematic, empirical scholarly study of celebrity personality. Dr. Drew hosted VH1′s “Sober House” and “Sex Rehab with Dr. Drew” and can be seen on MTV’s “Teen Mom” and “16 & Pregnant.”
“Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew” is produced by Irwin Entertainment. Executive producing for Irwin Entertainment are John Irwin, Damian Sullivan, Joel Rodgers and Rob Buchta. Dr. Drew Pinskyand Howard Lapides also serve as executive producers. Jill Holmes, Noah Pollack and Jeff Olde are executive producers for VH1.
VH1 connects viewers to the music, artists and pop culture that matter to them most with TV series, specials, live events, exclusive online content and public affairs initiatives. VH1 is available in 99 million households in the U.S. VH1 also has an array of digital channels and services including VH1Classic, VH1 Soul, VH1 Mobile, and extensive video on VH1.com. Connect with VH1 at VH1.com.
*** For up-to-the-minute and archival press information including releases and photographs, visit VH1′s press-only Web site at www.vh1.com/press.
*All times ET/PT
SOURCE VH1
CELEBRITY REHAB WITH DR. DREW SEASON 5 FINALE SUNDAY, AUGUST 21 st
August 16th, 2011
“Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew: Season 5 Revisited” Will Take A Look At The Most Explosive Season-To-Date In A 2-Part Special Set To Premiere On September 4 th & 11 th
A 4-Part Special, “Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew: Seasons 1-4 Revisited”
Will Premiere In the Fall
LOS ANGELES, CA – AUGUST 16 – As one of the most buzzed about seasons of “ Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew” draws to an end Dr Drew, Bob and Shelly have a lot of trepidation about the cast as they ready themselves to leave the safe confines of the rehab facility and reenter a world full of the temptations that brought them there. The end of in-patient treatment is just the beginning of their long roads to continued sobriety. Season five of “Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew” winds down as the finale airs Sunday, August 21 st at 9pm*.
If you’ve been wondering how all of the ‘celebrity rehabbers’ from past seasons have been doing with their sobriety, VH1 will air “Celebrity Rehab Revisited” – five, one-hour retrospectives of the series. “Celebrity Rehab Revisited”will serve as “where are they now” specials with Dr. Drew and his head councilor Bob Forrest looking back on all five seasons of Celebrity Rehab. These specials will include visits with former patients to see where they are now in their fight for sobriety. We will see some patients achieving incredible success and living fulfilling lives, and others continuing their struggle to maintain sobriety outside the safety of rehab.
First up is “ Celebrity Rehab with Dr Drew Season 5 Revisited,” a two-part special that will premiere on September 4 and 11 at 10pm*. Seasons 1-4 are set to premiere in the fall starting with season 1 on Wednesday, November 30thfollowed by seasons 2, 3, and 4.
· Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew Season 5 Revisited – September 4 & 11 at 10pm
· Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew Season 1 Revisited – November 30
· Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew Season 2 Revisited – December 7
· Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew Season 3 Revisited – December 14
· Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew Season 4 Revisited – December 21
Dr. Drew is the host of the nationally syndicated late night radio show Loveline as well as a respected practicing MD, board certified in internal and addiction medicine, who is staff at Huntington Hospital and assistant clinical professor of KECK USC School of Medicine. Additionally, he is hosting a new primetime show on HLN called “Dr. Drew” and will also be hosting a daytime talk show “Dr. Drew’s Lifechangers” on the CW premiering September 19th. He is the author of the New York Times best seller The Mirror Effect: How Celebrity Narcissism is Seducing America (Harper Collins) and Cracked: Putting Broken Lives Together Again (Harper-Collins.) Dr. Drew co-authored the first academic study on celebrities and narcissism that was published in the Journal of Research in Personality (Elsevier) in September 2006, and is the first systematic, empirical scholarly study of celebrity personality. Dr. Drew hosted VH1’s “Sober House” and “Sex Rehab with Dr. Drew” and can be seen on MTV’s “Teen Mom” and “16 & Pregnant.”
“Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew” is produced by Irwin Entertainment. Executive producing for Irwin Entertainment are John Irwin, Damian Sullivan, Joel Rodgers and Rob Buchta. Dr. Drew Pinsky and Howard Lapides also serve as executive producers. Jill Holmes, Noah Pollack and Jeff Olde are executive producers for VH1.
# # #
VH1 connects viewers to the music, artists and pop culture that matter to them most with TV series, specials, live events, exclusive online content and public affairs initiatives. VH1 is available in 99 million households in the U.S. VH1 also has an array of digital channels and services including VH1Classic, VH1 Soul, VH1 Mobile, and extensive video on VH1.com. Connect with VH1 at VH1.com.
*** For up-to-the-minute and archival press information including releases and photographs, visit VH1′s press-only Web site at www.vh1.com/press
Addiction a brain disorder, not just bad behavior
August 16th, 2011WASHINGTON—That’s true whether it involves drugs and alcohol or gambling and compulsive eating, the doctors group said Monday. And like other chronic conditions such as heart disease or diabetes, treating addiction and preventing relapse is a long-term endeavor, the specialists concluded.
Addiction generally is described by its behavioral symptoms — the highs, the cravings, and the things people will do to achieve one and avoid the other. The new definition doesn’t disagree with the standard guide for diagnosis based on those symptoms.
But two decades of neuroscience have uncovered how addiction hijacks different parts of the brain, to explain what prompts those behaviors and why they can be so hard to overcome. The society’s policy statement, published on its Web site, isn’t a new direction as much as part of an effort to translate those findings to primary care doctors and the general public.
“The behavioral problem is a result of brain dysfunction,” agrees Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
She welcomed the statement as a way to help her own agency’s work to spur more primary care physicians to screen their patients for signs of addiction. NIDA estimates that 23 million Americans need treatment for substance abuse but only about 2 million get that help. Trying to add compassion to the brain findings, NIDA even has made readings fromEugene O’Neill‘s “Long Day’s Journey into Night” a part of meetings where primary care doctors learn about addiction.
Then there’s the frustration of relapses, which doctors and families alike need to know are common for a chronic disease, Volkow says.
“You have family members that say, ‘OK, you’ve been to a detox program, how come you’re taking drugs?”‘ she says. “The pathology in the brain persists for years after you’ve stopped taking the drug.”
Just what does happen in the brain? It’s a complex interplay of emotional, cognitive and behavioral networks.
Genetics plays a role, meaning some people are more vulnerable to an addiction if they, say, experiment with drugs as a teenager or wind up on potent prescription painkillers after an injury.
Age does, too. The frontal cortex helps put the brakes on unhealthy behaviors, Volkow explains. It’s where the brain’s reasoning side connects to emotion-related areas. It’s among the last neural regions to mature, one reason that it’s harder for a teenager to withstand peer pressure to experiment with drugs.
Even if you’re not biologically vulnerable to begin with, perhaps you try alcohol or drugs to cope with a stressful or painful environment, Volkow says. Whatever the reason, the brain’s reward system can change as a chemical named dopamine conditions it to rituals and routines that are linked to getting something you’ve found pleasurable, whether it’s a pack of cigarettes or a few drinks or even overeating. When someone’s truly addicted, that warped system keeps them going back even after the brain gets so used to the high that it’s no longer pleasurable.
Make no mistake: Patients still must choose to fight back and treat an addiction, stresses Miller, medical director of the Herrington Recovery Center at Rogers Memorial Hospital in Oconomowoc, Wis.
But understanding some of the brain reactions at the root of the problem will “hopefully reduce some of the shame about some of these issues, hopefully reduce stigma,” he says.
And while most of the neuroscience centers on drug and alcohol addiction, the society notes that it’s possible to become addicted to gambling, sex or food although there’s no good data on how often that happens. It’s time for better study to find out, Miller says.
Meanwhile, Volkow says intriguing research is under way to use those brain findings to develop better treatments — not just to temporarily block an addict’s high but to strengthen the underlying brain circuitry to fend off relapse.
Topping Miller’s wish list: Learning why some people find recovery easier and faster than others, and “what does brain healing look like.”
