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U.S. health officials are giving $350 million to researchers in four states hit hardest by the deadly opioid epidemic. The study announced Thursday aims to cut overdose deaths by 40% over three years in local communities grappling with misuse of the addictive drugs. Researchers will study evidence-based techniques for fighting addiction and overdose, such as medication-based treatments like methadone and criminal justice reforms. (Perrone, 4/18)

The National Institutes of Health will award grants to research sites in Kentucky, Massachusetts, New York and Ohio, NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins said at a news conference to unveil the plan. They will go to the University of Kentucky, Boston Medical Center, Columbia University and Ohio State University. Prescription opioid pain treatments and drugs like heroin and the more potent fentanyl were responsible for 47,600 U.S. deaths in 2017, according to government figures, with only a small decline last year, according to provisional data. (Mishra and Mathias, 4/18)

The $353 million effort will test the idea that the best approaches to combat the drug crisis are well known but poorly implemented and coordinated. It will employ a comprehensive strategy in each community that encourages the involvement of doctors, treatment providers, law enforcement, courts, churches and even housing providers — an approach that has worked in a few places. Critics have long complained, for example, that even the small portion of substance abusers who are able to find treatment often are abandoned when they seek jobs, housing or continued counseling and social support. Those problems are among the many factors that lead to repeated relapses. (Bernstein, 4/18)

An NIH spokeswoman said the ambitious 40% goal was based on experiences from adding evidence-based steps into communities. The federal government estimates the number of U.S. deaths by opioid overdose reached 47,000 cases in 2017, and the new initiative is part of a broad, concerted effort to combat the scourge. The Food and Drug Administration recently announced new dosage forms, limited-quantity packaging and new research requirements on companies that make painkillers. (Burton, 4/18)

"Each site is partnering with at least 15 communities to measure the impact of integrating evidence-based prevention, treatment and recovery interventions across primary care, behavioral health, justice and other settings in highly affected parts of the country," according to an NIH release on the project. (King, 4/18)

Boston Medical Center has received an $89 million federal grant to participate in a nationwide research study addressing the opioid crisis, with an ambitious goal of curbing opioid deaths in a broad swath of Massachusetts by 40 percent in the next three years. The grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, part of the National Institutes of Health, spans four states and totals more than $350 million. (Kempe, 4/18)