How Stimulants Are Reshaping the Overdose Crisis | SPONSORED

THIS SPONSORED PODCAST IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE COBRE ON OPIOIDS AND OVERDOSE AT RHODE ISLAND HOSPITAL.

The US overdose crisis is changing. While opioid-related overdose deaths have begun to decline, researchers are seeing a growing role for stimulants, including cocaine and methamphetamine, in overdose risk.

In this sponsored episode, Leslie Erdelack speaks with Dr. Jaclyn White Hughto from Brown University about what researchers are learning from the evolving overdose epidemic. They discuss findings from the POINTS (Preventing Overdoses Involving Stimulants) study, a CDC-funded project examining stimulant-involved overdoses in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

The conversation explores:

• How the US overdose epidemic has evolved, from prescription opioids to fentanyl and stimulant involvement
• Why stimulant-involved overdoses differ from opioid overdoses
• The rise of stimulant-only overdose deaths
• What researchers learned from interviews with people who use drugs
• Misconceptions about fentanyl contamination in the stimulant supply
• How people who use stimulants perceive and manage overdose risk
• The role of fentanyl test strips, naloxone, and other harm-reduction tools
• Community-driven strategies to improve overdose prevention
• Challenges surrounding Good Samaritan laws and emergency response
• Why surveillance data and public health monitoring remain critical
• New research examining potent stimulants and opportunities for earlier intervention

Dr. Hughto also discusses ongoing NIH-funded research aimed at understanding rising stimulant-only overdoses and identifying ways policymakers, clinicians, and communities can respond more effectively.

RELATED LINKS:

• The Center of Biomedical Research Excellence on Opioids and Overdose
• The POINTS (Preventing Overdoses Involving Stimulants) study