Budget Cuts Gut Mo. Alcohol Enforcement

The Missouri legislature has cut over $1 million from its Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Control, leaving just five agents to monitor 12,000 liquor licenses.

Study Says Teens Should Avoid Alcohol, Smoking to Prevent Headaches

Teens who drank a lot of alcoholic beverages and coffee, smoked, and got little exercise were more likely to suffer from migrane and tension headaches, according to German researchers. EScienceNews reported June 6 that headaches are among the most common…

Talk of Delay for N.J. Medical Marijuana Law Riles Supporters

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie recently expressed support for the state’s new medical-marijuana law, but talks with lawmakers over when to put the law into effect have sparked anger among backers of the measure, the Newark Star-Ledger reported June 4….

U.S. AG Holder Calls Drug Courts ’Top Priority’

Drug courts should be more widely available to offenders, including juveniles, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said during an address at a National Association of Drug Court Professionals (NADCP) meeting last week in Boston. The Boston Globe reported June 4 that…

JPI Says Prison Populations Can Be Safely Trimmed

A new report from the Justice Policy Institute urges states to use “innovative and evidence-based strategies” to safely and cost-effectively reduce their prison populations. JPI “found that increasing opportunities for parole and improving parole release decisions, improving parole supervision and ensuring access to support and treatment services are cost-effective means of cutting extraneous spending while maintaining public safety.”

The report is For Immediate Release: How to Safely Reduce Prison Populations and Support People Returning to Their Communities.

Community College Students Launch Anti-Smoking, ’Good Behavior’ Campaign

Students at Onondaga Community College in Syracuse, N.Y., will launch a comprehensive “good behavior” campaign in the fall to discourage smoking in prohibited areas, littering, and other bad habits on campus, USA Today reported May 24. The “Create Change” program…

Some Doctors Refuse to Treat Smokers

Mindful of smoking’s negative impact on surgical outcomes and wary of liability, some doctors are refusing to operate on patients unless they quit smoking, the Daytona Beach News-Journal reported May 24. Samantha Land, 42, was refused a facelift unless she…

MediCal May Stop Paying for Methadone Treatment

California’s state Medicaid program would stop paying for methadone maintenance under a plan from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger that’s aimed at cutting $53 million from MediCal, the Sacramento Bee reported May 26. If the state legislature approves the plan, only pregnant…

Cops Group Defends Tobacco Industry

Something called the Law Enforcement Alliance of America (LEAA) — which claims to be “the nation’s largest non-profit, non-partisan coalition of law enforcement professionals, crime victims, and concerned citizens united for justice” — apparently feels that Big Tobacco needs police protection from bureaucrats at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).