Drug Strategies is a non-profit research institute that promotes more effective drug abuse prevention, education and treatment.

Recent Media

Read Mathea Falco and Dr. Hany Farid’s most recent op-ed in Newsweek, regarding Google’s implicit role in the U.S. fentanyl crisis here.

Fentanyl

More Americans died from opioid overdoses in 2018 than from traffic accidents or guns. According to the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, two-thirds of the almost 47,000 opioid-related deaths were caused by powerful synthetic opioids, primarily fentanyl and its analogs. Sold through illegal drug markets across the U.S., fentanyl is often substituted as a cheaper, if far more dangerous, alternative to heroin and other opioids, like Vicodin and Oxycontin. Fentanyl is also mixed—with or without the user’s knowledge—with street cocaine and other drugs. While the opioid epidemic overall may be leveling off, CDC reports that deaths involving synthetic opioids such as fentanyl climbed 10 percent in 2018. Thus, fentanyl is now driving the most lethal opioid epidemic the U.S. has experienced in the past century.

Internet Drugs

The Internet, woven into the fabric of our daily lives, has revolutionized everything from communications to commerce. The worldwide web gives us information at the click of a button, including invaluable resources about drug abuse, treatment and prevention. Search engines and social media have influenced how individuals not only seek information or resources, but has also changed the way drug users and dealers find and access both prescription medications and illicit drugs such as fentanyl. 

Drug Strategies, an early pioneer in addressing drug policies, treatment, and prevention, was the first to look at the potential impact the internet could have on illegal supplies of opioids.

Treating Teens

Working with a team of nationally recognized experts, Drug Strategies prepared a comprehensive assessment of the key elements of effective adolescent drug treatment programs. This guide, the first of its kind, aimed to help parents, teachers, judges, counselors and other concerned adults make better choices about teen treatment options.

Interactive Tools

Drug Strategies was a pioneer in creating interactive tools to educate the public and professionals on drug use and abuse. Drug Strategies developed bubblemonkey.com, Tunnel Tail and a separate online resource for prevention, treatment and recovery programs based on city and state locations.

Bubblemonkey.com was a groundbreaking interactive website that provided youth with accurate, anonymous information on drugs, substance abuse, and treatment.  Tunnel Tail was a highly engaging game for young adolescents built on important prevention concepts. TEEN SUBSTANCE USE: Online Resources for Prevention, Treatment, and Recovery featured an innovative website that was designed to help parents, teens, and professionals find accurate and reliable information related to prevention, education, treatment, and recovery.