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New Hampshire social workers are all too familiar with how opioid abuse can push children into foster care. ...It’s a last resort, reflecting what appears to be a stark trend across the state: Since 2010, the number of child removals in which substance abuse was a factor has nearly quadrupled. (Duncan, 1/8)

Add another negative consequence to the opioid epidemic’s far-reaching impact: Prescription drug abuse is driving more children into Florida’s foster care system, according to a new study from the University of South Florida. The study, published in this month’s issue of Health Affairs, shows that addiction to painkillers like oxycodone or morphine has contributed to more than just a dramatic rise in overdose deaths and health care costs, said Troy Quast, a USF researcher and the study’s lead author. (Griffin, 1/8)

Massachusetts, where Ohlman lives, began recognizing that some opioid overdose deaths are suicides in May 2017. The state says confirmed suicides are only about 2 percent of all overdose deaths, but Department of Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel says it's very difficult to determine the person's true intent. (Bebinger, 1/9)

Gov. Rick Scott is pushing legislation that would be a modest step toward combating the state’s growing opioid crisis. But it’s placing the former healthcare company CEO in an unusual spot: He’s at odds with doctors, drug companies and some fellow Republicans, who fear losing control or profits from Scott’s legislation. (Mower, 1/8)

In his final State of the State speech before his 2018 re-election campaign, Gov. Doug Ducey touted his accomplishments while presenting an agenda of tackling the opioid crisis, increasing school funding and adopting new policies for ex-prisoners and the child-welfare system. In a speech that lasted 56 minutes Monday afternoon, Arizona's Republican governor, first elected in 2014, did not identify funding sources for his many proposals. (Wingett Sanchez, Gardiner and Randazzo, 1/8)