Aaron Laxton’s trunk is full of supplies for drug users. Laxton goes out nearly every day handing out free syringes to heroin addicts in St. Louis. Laxton is on a mission to help them survive until the day they get clean — just like he did.

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Dr. Wen joined WJZ to discuss the opioid epidemic and how the Health Department is working to combat it in Baltimore City. 

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Almost like magic, the drug naloxone can bring victims of opioid overdoses back from the brink of death. With more than 115 people dying each day from opioid overdoses across the country, the drug could save thousands of lives each year.

Except for one problem.

The prices of naloxone set by drug makers have skyrocketed, putting it beyond the reach of some police, first responders, community groups, and families and friends of overdose victims.

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Public health advocates and officials are at odds over programs that allow drug users to bring in their illicit drugs to test them for a deadly synthetic opioid.

In this edition of Dr. Wen's regular Healthwatch segment on WYPR's Midday with Tom Hall, she gives tips for heart health, provides and update on the City's teen pregnancy prevention lawsuit against the Trump administration, and warns against the danger of synthetic cannabis. 

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In his op-ed, Communities United Activist Perry Hopkins tells his story of being revived by Narcan, and explains the need for naloxone to be cheaper, and what the federal government can do about it. 

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Dr. Leana Wen served on a panel of experts for WJZ's town hall: "Baltimore Standing Together: Opioid Epedemic. 

Healthcare executives and public health officials pushed for easier access to drugs that reduce dependency on painkillers, as well as for a less punitive approach to dealing with those addicted to opioids, in sessions at a conference on April 25-26.

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In their guest commentary, Evan Behrle, Dr. Shelly Choo and Dr. Leana Wen discuss the Health Department's Levels of Care initiative. 

In many doctor's offices and hospitals across the country, the response to someone seeking addiction treatment is simple: "We don't do that here."We are living through the deadliest drug epidemic in American history. Overdose is now the leading cause of death for Americans under age 50. "We don't do that here"

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Baltimore health officials are urging the Trump administration to use a law, which was last considered by the Bush administration during the 2001 anthrax scare , to cut the price of the opioid-over