Drug News You Can Use

Rx drug use a growing concern in schools

Alarming statistics point to a growing prescription drug abuse problem among teens. Now one local official is trying to fight the issue before it gets out of hand.

Experts say one out of every 10 teens has abused prescription drugs in the last 30 days.

“It’s a concern. It should be a concern with parents and they should be talking to their kids about it,” said parent Jacqueline Sewell.

Some parents say school administrators need to watch out.

“You’re going to find it in the schools. And you have to deal with it so yeah, they need to be aware and get involved too,” said Sewell.

Psychemedics Corporation Announces Second Quarter Profits

DECLARES 15th YEAR OF CONSECUTIVE QUARTERLY DIVIDENDS

ACTON, Mass., Aug. 10, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Psychemedics Corporation (NASDAQ: PMD) today announced second quarter financial results for the period ended June 30, 2011. The Company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.12 per share payable to shareholders of record as of August 22, 2011 to be paid on September 2, 2011. This will be the Company’s 60th consecutive quarterly dividend.

The Company’s revenue for the quarter ended June 30, 2011 was $6.2 million versus $5.4 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2010, an increase of 15%. Net income for the quarter ended June 30, 2011 was $1.1 million or $0.21 per diluted share, versus $873 thousand or $0.17 per diluted share, for the comparable period last year, an increase of 25%. The Company’s revenue for the six months ended June 30, 2011 was $12.2 million, as compared to $9.9 million for the comparable period of 2010, an increase of 23%. Net income for the six months ended June 30, 2011 was $2.0 million or $0.37 per diluted share, as compared to last year during which the Company earned $1.4 million or $0.26 per diluted share, an increase of 43%.

Raymond C. Kubacki, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said,

“Our second quarter results were strong, particularly since we were comparing against our highest growth quarter last year. New business was exceptionally healthy in the quarter. We continued to have robust margins including a 28% pre-tax margin. While we maintained tight cost control, we continue to make investments in sales and marketing.

We continue to have a strong balance sheet with more than $4.6 million in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments and no long term debt. Our directors share our confidence in the long-term future of Psychemedics and remain committed to rewarding shareholders and sharing the financial success of the Company with them as we move forward.

Therefore, the Board has declared a $0.12 dividend for the quarter. This is our 60th consecutive quarterly dividend, which represents a major milestone of paying a dividend for the last 15 years straight. In addition, we continue to have a buyback program in place.”

Psychemedics is the world’s largest provider of hair testing for drugs of abuse with thousands of corporations relying on the patented Psychemedics drug testing services. Psychemedics’ clients include over 10% of the Fortune 500, some of the largest police departments in America and six Federal Reserve Banks.

Hollywood Has Meth Problem

A majority of U.S. counties have reported crystal meth as their most serious drug problem, citing it more often than cocaine and marijuana combined. In Hollywood, cocaine is still king, but meth is gaining.
“It is in the circuit and it’s slowly rising,” Dr. Eric Braverman, addiction specialist and author of “Younger (Sexier) You” told FOX411’s Pop Tarts column. “It doesn’t need to be imported; it can be made at home, so it’s one of the hardest substances to police or control.”

Abuse of synthetic drug spreads across Maine

Across Maine, police and hospitals are reporting a surge of people becoming delusional and violent after injecting, snorting or smoking so-called bath salts, a synthetic drug that officials say is marketed under names including Monkey Dust, Monkey Mess, K2 and Vanilla Sky.

The Northern New England Poison Center received 110 calls — 87 from Maine, 17 from New Hampshire, four from Vermont and two from places unknown — between January and July from hospitals and individuals reporting instances of people in need of help after taking the drug. Last year, the center got only one call, in November.