Morning Break: Pill Mills and Heroin; New PAH Drug; "Affluenza" Teen on the Lam

A crackdown on Florida "pill mills" may have also reduced heroin overdose deaths. (Washington Post)

Bayer is voting with its pocketbook for the so-called CRISPR gene editing technology, promising up to $335 million in funding for a small Swiss company involved in the field.

Remember the teen who blamed "affluenza" for causing him to drive drunk and kill four people? He"s now the subject of a massive manhunt after skipping a probation appointment -- and perhaps the country.

Need Medicare drug spending data? CMS has opened a new "dashboard" to provide easier access for policymakers and researchers.

Farmers and ranchers use antibiotics to make livestock grow bigger -- does it work for people, too? (The Atlantic)

Selexipag, an IP prostacyclin receptor agonist, was approved by the FDA for pulmonary arterial hypertension and will be sold as Uptravi, according to maker Actelion, which said the drug should reach pharmacy shelves next month.

And an investigational drug for posterior uveitis met its primary endpoint in a phase III trial, says manufacturer pSivida.

A drug cost-effectiveness group blasted GlaxoSmithKline"s pricing for the asthma drug Nucala (mepolizumab) as three times what it"s actually worth. (Reuters)

Long term care insurance: It"s baffling. (New York Times)

"Should physicians use the "copy-paste" function to document in the EHR?" Jeremy Zasowski weighs in.

Cancer looks quite different in the developing world than it does in the U.S. (New York Times)

It just gets worse for Martin Shkreli.

The E. coli outbreaks linked to the Chipotle restaurant chain appear to be winding down, the CDC reported, with no new cases reported since November.

Former President Jimmy Carter"s 28-year-old grandson Jeremy apparently died of a heart attack, his brother says, although authorities have not yet officially declared a cause of death.

Morning Break is a daily guide to what"s new and interesting on the Web for healthcare professionals, powered by the MedPage Today community. Got a tip? Send it to us:MPT_editorial@everydayhealthinc.com.

Source: http://www.medpagetoday.com/Psychiatry/Addictions/55374

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"Affluenza" Teen"s Disappearance Not Surprising, Says Father of Victim

The father of a child injured when "affluenza" teen Ethan Couch drunkenly crashed an SUV in Texas more than three years ago said he"s not surprised the infamous teen has disappeared.

"I don"t think there"s been any accountability for Ethan," said Kevin McConnell, whose then-12-year-old son Lucas was injured in the Fort Worth drunken driving crash. "I think he was never taught that actions have consequences other than the easiest way out," McConnell told NBC News.

Couch gained attention when he was sentenced to 10 years of probation for the crash, which left four people dead and nine injured, after his defense team argued that he suffered from affluenza a purported condition that refers to an upbringing so privileged that a person can"t distinguish right from wrong.

"Affluenza," however, is not recognized by the American Psychiatric Association as an official diagnosis.

The now-18-year-old went missing on Tuesday with his mother, and has been placed on Tarrant County"s most wanted list as local officials, U.S. Marshals and the FBI search desperately for him.

"At this point, I feel like, there"s no exit strategy for Ethan doing it this way. This can only lead to a path of destruction," said McConnell.

The father said the resurfacing of attention on Couch"s case over the past few days has put a strain on his family. "It"s drastically affected my family," McConnell said. "It"s brought out emotions that we shouldn"t have to be dealing with."

Lucas McConnell suffered minor injuries to his back and head in the crash, but witness his family friend lying dead on the side of the road, according to NBC Dallas-Fort Worth.

McConnell said he has forgiven Couch, but he hopes that the teen will face "swift and certain and severe punishment."

"And I think that punishment and correction might save his life. Might turn him around," McConnell said, urging Couch"s father, Fred, to do everything he can to bring his son back. The U.S. Marshal"s Service told NBC News that Fred Couch has cooperated and has talked to investigators.

If Couch is caught, he could face up to 10 years in prison, and if his mother helped him disappear, she could also face charges.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/affluenza-teens-disappearance-not-surprising-says-father-victim-n483266

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