Brian Mann

President Biden wants to eliminate sentencing disparities between crack and powder cocaine that led to the incarceration of far more Black and Hispanic Americans. Critics are skeptical of the reform.

The White House announced support Tuesday for eliminating sentencing disparities for crack and powder cocaine, which experts say unfairly target Black and Hispanic communities.

American communities were devastated by addiction and the war on drugs. Now they're struggling for a future but the damage runs deep. Healing and hope often clash with overdose deaths and poverty.

Researchers know how to curb the risks of overdose and disease among drug users, but policymakers are reluctant to allow public health measures that include needle exchanges and access to safer drugs.

Researchers and doctors say they know how to curb harm caused by addiction and the spread of dangerous drugs. But lawmakers are reluctant to allow needle exchanges and access to safer narcotics.

President Nixon called for an "all-out offensive" against drugs and addiction. The U.S. is now rethinking policies that led to mass incarceration and shattered families while drug deaths kept rising.

A federal bankruptcy judge cleared plans for a final vote by Purdue Pharma's creditors that would release members of the Sackler family and their financial empire from liability for the opioid crisis.

A bankruptcy judge cleared a plan for final vote by creditors of Purdue Pharma, maker of OxyContin, that would release the Sacklers and their financial empire from liability for the opioid crisis.

Drug distributors have faced embarrassing revelations about their internal practices. One email shared by corporate executives described rural Americans addicted to opioids as "pillbillies."

Drug distributors are in court in West Virginia over their role in the state's opioid crisis. Documents spotlight revelations — including internal communications that mocked people with addiction.

A diplomatic row has frozen U.S.-Mexican efforts to target drug cartels. American officials say illicit fentanyl from labs in Mexico is driving a surge in overdose deaths.

Under a bankruptcy procedure prohibited by courts in part of the country, the Sacklers could be sheltered from opioid lawsuits even without declaring bankruptcy. Some states are crying foul.

With the deadly opioid fentanyl pushing overdose deaths to record levels, federal officials hope buprenorphine will save lives in parts of the country where the drug is rarely prescribed.

The Biden administration is working on new federal guidelines that will make it easier for Americans experiencing opioid addiction to get more effective medical treatment.

Researchers say cocaine, meth and other street drugs are increasingly contaminated with deadly synthetic opioids, contributing to a major spike in deaths.

A Tennessee court found Endo Pharmaceuticals liable for harm caused by its Opana ER opioid. The "harsh sanction" followed a court judgment that Endo made false statements and withheld key documents.

Derek Chauvin's defense has suggested George Floyd's drug use might have made him more "volatile" and unpredictable, justifying the use of force. Critics say Floyd needed health care and compassion.

Patrick Radden Keefe helped expose the Sackler family's role in the deadly opioid epidemic. His new book deepens the narrative, raising questions about the blurring of medicine and capitalism.

The Biden administration points to fentanyl as the major culprit for the increase in deaths. Officials unveiled a new one-year strategy to reduce the number of fatalities from drug overdoses.

Critics say in many states the legal marijuana boom hasn't benefited people of color. Lawmakers in New York say their approach avoids those mistakes.