FRANKFORT, Ky. – It's no longer a secret that Americans are dying at an alarming rate from a nationwide opioid crisis and increased suicide rate, and those factors also are contributing to reduction in life expectancy.

Late last year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported a sustained, three-year drop in life expectancy not seen since 1918, when it was attributed to deaths from World War I and a flu pandemic.

Population health researcher Stephen Bezruchka says life expectancy is on the rise around the globe, but not in the United States.

He points out there are now 35 countries where people live longer lives.

"So, people's lives are not what they expect to have, and the fact that mortality in adulthood – that is, the 25 to 64-year range, the prime of life – that's going up and people are internalizing the stress of life, and stress kills," he stresses.

The CDC's preliminary figures showed that 72,000 people in the U.S. died from drug overdoses in 2017 – nearly 200 a day.

The number of suicides nationwide was 47,000, the highest in a half century.

In the past five decades, the gap between the rich and poor has risen significantly in the U.S., and Bezruchka notes that societies with high levels of economic inequality typically have lower life-expectancy rates.

He adds that societal dysfunction may be causing people to self-medicate with drugs.

"What's our response to all these increasing deaths from opioids?” he questions. “Well, it's putting Naltrexone, the opioid antagonist, in public places so if somebody is overdosing you can try to revive them instead of asking the question, 'Why are we the world's biggest users of opioids?'"

Currently, American men can expect to live about 76 years, while women live on average to be 81 years old.

Bezruchka says that's far behind the typical 87-year lifespan for Japanese women.

"Why would women be falling behind the other countries in health stats?” he asks. “What's expected of an American woman?

“Everything. You have to have a successful career, be a loving wife, a caring soccer mom, have to have the physique of a jock, the looks of a supermodel – and it's hard to do all that."

In addition to Japan, women live the longest in Spain and Switzerland, while men live the longest in Japan, Switzerland and Australia It’s no longer a secret that Americans are dying at an alarming rate from a nationwide opioid crisis and increased suicide rate, and those factors also are contributing to reduction in life expectancy.


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Law enforcement officers and drug prevention advocates in Missouri are joining forces to tackle prescription drug misuse.

As part of the Drug Enforcement Administration's "National Prescription Drug Take Back Day," five collection sites will be set up across Taney and Stone counties on April 26.

Data from two years ago showed around 190,000 Missourians misused opioids, including 180,000 who misused prescription pain relievers.

Marietta Hagan, project coordinator at Cox Health, warned prescription drug misuse contributes heavily to opioid use disorder.

"People would get prescription medication that didn't belong to them as easy as walking into their parent's medicine cabinet and pulling it out of there, or pulling it out of the side night table at bedtime," Hagan explained.

Volunteers will be at the sites offering free safety tips and disposal kits, making it easy for families to clear out their medicine cabinets.

Hagan emphasized "Drug Take Back Day" is about more than just safe disposal. It is also a reminder to store medications properly to prevent misuse. She shared guidance on how to safely get rid of unwanted medications.

"Previously government agencies had encouraged actually the flushing of medications," Hagan noted. "But we now know thanks to environmental science, that is not recommended. Those medications end up in our water supply, in our lakes and our streams."

Most prescription and over-the-counter medications will be accepted, including pills, patches, and vapes without batteries. National Prescription Drug Take Back Day is held twice a year, typically in April and October.


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A Tennessee nonprofit is warning that potential Medicaid cuts could threaten crucial support for the state's nearly 1 million family caregivers.

Medicaid supports 4.5 million individuals through home health-care services nationwide.

Megan Schwalm, president and CEO of the Tennessee Caregiver Coalition, said more than half of its funding comes from the now-dismantled Administration for Community Living - which has been folded into the Department of Health and Human Services.

Schwalm said federal funding cuts have affected the coalition, which provides respite services for people caring for loved ones with dementia or other serious conditions.

"Our state typically reimburses at $23.44 an hour for respite, and so us being able to provide at about $5 an hour is a huge cost savings," said Schwalm. "But with those cuts to Medicaid and the Administration for Community Living, we won't be able to provide those services any longer."

She said the funding cuts have already forced the loss of a staff position and nearly all outreach efforts for respite services across Tennessee.

Medicaid is jointly funded by states and the federal government, but Congress is proposing cutting Medicaid spending by $880 billion over 10 years.

According to AARP, Tennessee already ranks poorly among states for its lack of supports and services for caregivers and people with disabilities.

Schwalm acknowledged that Medicaid could benefit from reform, but she said dismantling it without a clear, comprehensive plan would be detrimental to the people of Tennessee.

"These cuts to Medicaid are coming, but there is no safety net in place," said Schwalm. "There is no alternative. And so it is very unclear what will happen to these folks in these programs."

She emphasized the importance of Tennesseans letting their elected officials know how they feel about safeguarding these safety net programs.




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A bill in the Tennessee General Assembly is reigniting debate over how rural hospitals can staff anesthesia providers. House Bill 979 would address the shortage of anesthesiologists in rural Tennessee by allowing hospitals in counties with fewer than 105,000 residents to directly employ physician anesthesiologists.

Hospitals now have to use third-party anesthesiology services.

Dr. Louis Chemin III, anesthesiologist and physician with Tennessee Anesthesiology Consultants Exchange, supports physician supervision in what's known as the "Anesthesia Care Team" model. He said anyone hired as an anesthesiologist would be required to follow strict medical guidelines.

"Currently under state law, a hospital cannot employ an anesthesiologist, a radiologist, a pathologist or an emergency medicine physician. If this bill were to pass, it would allow hospitals in these rural communities the option to hire an anesthesiologist," he contended.

Chemin said the bill would allow a hospital anesthesiologist to perform anesthesia in one operating room, or to supervise the process in up to four operating rooms.

On Wednesday, the bill passed the House with a vote of 72 to 5, with 11 members "present but not voting." It now heads to the state Senate.

When a physician anesthesiologist provides medical direction to Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists or Anesthesiologist Assistants, Chemin explained, they must comply with seven steps outlined by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to qualify for reimbursement under Medicare.

"This law means that if a hospital employs an anesthesiologist, that they must allow the anesthesiologist to practice in a way that is safe and is in agreement with these seven steps," he continued.

Chemin added that these requirements would ensure the anesthesiologist's active involvement in the patient's care and safety.


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