+8 Opioid committee finishes the year strong By JACOB CHRISTOPHER jacob@thepaper.media Jan 3, 2026 Dr. Katie Samuels returned to Burke County as the Opioid Settlement Coordinator in spring 2025, and among the many milestones passed, the coun…
Commissioners will consider opioid board's funding recommendations By THE PAPER STAFF Aug 13, 2025 Hiring a peer navigator to connect residents to services and distributing naloxone are two of the recommendations that the Burke County Opioid…
Burke seeking opioid treatment providers By MARTY QUEEN marty@thepaper.media Jun 21, 2025 Burke has released the request for qualifications (RFQ) for substance use providers. The RFQ process will remain open until July 11 at 2 p.m.
+3 Burke Opioid Advisory Committee off to fast start By MARTY QUEEN marty@thepaper.media Jun 19, 2025 One of the first initiatives for Burke County’s inaugural Opioid Advisory Committee will be to provide those recovering from overdose a PORT i…
Breaking Burke to receive $2.5 million more in opioid settlement funds By MARTY QUEEN marty@thepaper.media Jun 17, 2025 Attorneys general of all 55 eligible states and U.S. territories agreed to sign on to a $7.4 billion settlement from Purdue Pharma and its own…
Breaking Varnadoe Samuels is back as Burke's Opioid Settlement Coordinator By MARTY QUEEN marty@thepaper.media Apr 29, 2025 Former coordinator Dr. Katie Varnadoe-Samuels was picked from a competitive field of nearly 100 applicants.
+2 Opioid strategies: Understanding Options A and B By MARTY QUEEN marty@thepaper.media Feb 19, 2025 Any discussion on how North Carolina counties are allowed to use the money they receive from the national opioid lawsuit settlement will invar…
Community members want to have a say in opioid settlement plans By MARTY QUEEN marty@thepaper.media Feb 18, 2025 The forum was part of a “reset” for the county in its approach to deciding how best to use Burke’s share of the $1.4 billion awarded the state…
Commissioners move forward with plans for opioid settlement funds By MARTY QUEEN marty@thepaper.media Feb 14, 2025 The Burke Board of Commissioners made some landmark decisions concerning the county’s battle against the opioid crisis including plans to move…
+2 More opioid settlement money headed Burke's way By MARTY QUEEN Senior Reporter Nov 23, 2024 North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein announced a $1.37 billion settlement last week with Kroger in the ongoing string of opioid lawsuits…
Director: Community input needed for opioid settlement strategic plan By MARTY QUEEN Senior Reporter Sep 28, 2024 Dr. Katie Varnadoe, the director of behavioral health in Burke County, is spearheading the development of a strategic plan for the county's $2…
Officials: Sackler opioid lawsuit decision won't affect Burke's payout By MARTY QUEEN Senior Reporter Aug 3, 2024 The U.S. Supreme Court rejected a $6 billion opioid settlement by Purdue Pharma, impacting the Sackler family's liability shield. However, thi…
+2 Burke residents learn to save lives with naloxone training By CHARDA PEARSON Education and Business Reporter Jul 13, 2024 Opioid usage in Burke County remains a pressing issue despite a decline in opioid overdose deaths. Burke Recovery and the Burke County Chamber…
17-Year prison term for Morganton man in major fentanyl trafficking case By SAYDIE E. BEANStaff Writer Jun 13, 2024
+3 AG Stein says Burke ahead of the pack in plans for opioid funds By MARTY QUEEN Senior Reporter May 31, 2024 National Drug Czar Dr. Rahul Gupta’s flight was delayed, and he didn’t make it to the Burke Community Forum on addiction Wednesday night, leav…
+3 Substance Use Forum Participants May 31, 2024 Dr. Rahul Gupta, 54, is a West Virginia native. A graduate of Delhi University, The University of Alabama, and the London School of Business a…
+2 Biden Drug Czar Gupta speaks to Burke leaders By MARTY QUEEN Senior Reporter May 31, 2024 Thanks to a flight delay of more than three hours, Biden Administration Drug Czar Dr. Rahul Gupta didn’t make it to Morganton in time for his …
Nation's drug czar, AG Stein address overdose epidemic at CoMMA forum May 29, 2024 The nation’s Drug Czar, White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) Director Dr. Rahul Gupta was in Morganton Wednesday evening…
+2 Meth, Fentanyl, Firearms found in Morganton man's home May 25, 2024 A Morganton man remains in jail after being arrested on multiple drug-related charges.
Overdoses declined in 2023 but there's still much work to do By HENRY BEALLColumnist May 24, 2024 A few weeks ago, I wrote about the serious drug problem impacting American and Burke teenagers. My conclusion was that the legalization of wee…
County to receive $24M in settlement funds By MARTY QUEEN Senior Reporter May 17, 2024 Burke County will receive a total of more than $24 million in opioid lawsuit settlement funds over the next 15 years.
Fentanyl drug bust underscores substance use in Burke May 17, 2024 The Burke County Sheriff’s Office seized enough fentanyl to kill more than 16,000 people in a drug-trafficking bust May 10 that resulted in th…
+7 Morganton bust nets 33 grams of fentanyl By MARTY QUEEN Senior Reporter May 16, 2024 The Burke County Sheriff’s Office seized enough fentanyl to kill more than 16,000 people in a drug-trafficking bust May 10 that resulted in th…
Could legalizing marijuana help combat overdoses among youth? By HENRY BEALLColumnist May 3, 2024 Drug use has been a big problem in America for a while. Since the Industrial Revolution, people have been using mind-altering substances, but …
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