Police and public health leaders in Alabama are trying to deal with a spike in heroin use in recent years. Naloxone — or narcan — is a drug that, when administered correctly, can reverse the effects of a heroin overdose. A bill passed the Alabama Legislature this week that would allow first responders to give narcan to someone dying from an overdose. But some don’t think the bill goes far enough. UAB researchers are working on a crowd-funded study that puts narcan directly in the hands of users’ and family and friends. The study met its fundraising goal this week. UAB psychologist Karen Cropsey, who heads the program, spoke to Les Lovoy and explained how narcan works.
With the City Council in Bessemer scheduled to vote Tuesday on a “hyperscale” data center, challenges from an environmental group and the Alabama Department of Transportation present potential obstacles for the wildly unpopular project.
Hundreds of people across Alabama await a spot in the state’s increasingly limited facilities, despite a consent decree requiring the state to address delays in providing care for people who are charged with crimes but deemed too mentally ill to stand trial. But seven years since the federal agreement, the problem has only worsened.
Parker fills the court seat vacated by Bill Lewis who was tapped by President Donald Trump for a federal judgeship. The U.S. Senate last month confirmed Lewis as a U.S. district judge.
