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Deaths by drug overdose in the United States surged last year by more than 17 percent over 2015, another sign of the growing addiction crisis caused by opioids, according to a report released Friday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Preliminary data from the 50 states show that from the fourth quarter of 2015, through the fourth quarter of 2016, the rate of fatal overdoses rose to nearly 20 people per 100,000 from 16.3 per 100,000. (Kaplan, 11/3)

A Chinese narcotics control official played down China’s role in the distribution of synthetic opioid drugs, though U.S. President Donald Trump has vowed to press the issue at a summit in Beijing next week. Wei Xiaojun, a top officer in the Ministry of Public Security’s Narcotics Control Bureau, told reporters on Friday that Beijing is determined to stem exports of drugs like the opioid fentanyl that are made in China. (Areddy and Dou, 11/3)

Just a few months after Boston Mayor Marty Walsh was elected four years ago, the state declared the opioid crisis an emergency. Walsh said because of his personal experience in recovery, he was well-suited to help address the epidemic. But now as he seeks re-election, some say his actions have made matters worse. (Becker, 11/6)

Construction workers in Ohio were seven times more likely to die of an opioid overdose last year than were workers in other professions, according to a Plain Dealer analysis that included records from more than 12,000 opioid drug overdose deaths in the state from 2010 through 2016. (Dissell, 11/5)

A bipartisan panel of lawmakers last week supported a package of six wide-ranging bills designed to prevent and treat the state’s drug overdose crisis, building on five years of work from Gov. John Hickenlooper’s administration to identify holes in the current system. The approach — which, according to experts, puts Colorado in the top tier among states nationwide for its response — has been boosted by a $35 million infusion from the federal government to test solutions to what President Donald Trump has labeled a national public health emergency. (Frank, 11/5)

In semi-private booths, each with a chair and a mirror, Denver heroin users could shoot up with clean needles, no threat of arrest and under the supervision of staff trained to jump in with a life-saving antidote in case of overdose. It would look more like a medical clinic than a party lounge, with floors and furniture that workers could hose down in the event of vomit or blood spills. Staffers would hand out sterile needles and possibly distilled water, but clients would bring their own drugs to cook and inject. (Brown and Murray, 11/5)