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Chicago is one of many American cities that has battled the nation’s opioid epidemic in recent years. Cook County saw the number of confirmed opioid deaths rise about 10 percent in 2019 from the year before. But now, in the shadow of COVID-19, officials are expecting this year’s opioid-related deaths to double 2019’s total. For essential workers like Thoren, the pandemic means adapting to new realities and adopting new methods to provide treatment for drugs and alcohol. (Rohrich, 8/7)

A New Mexico man has died of septicemic plague, marking the second plague case in the state this year. The Rio Arriba County man was in his 20s and was hospitalized before he died, the New Mexico Department of Health Friday said in a news release. (Holcombe and Spells, 8/8)

Another heat wave was rolling into the New York tristate region Sunday as over 300,000 residents and businesses waited for electricity to return after last week’s tropical storm. The race to restore fuel for desperately needed air conditioners, refrigerators and electronic devices as another work week approached was in full swing under sunny skies as thousands of power company workers tried to restore energy before temperatures lurch toward 90 degrees on Monday. (Neumeister, 8/9)

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra filed an amicus brief on Friday in support of ending the prosecution against a woman who was arrested and charged with murder after delivering a stillborn baby with toxic levels of methamphetamine in its system. Chelsea Cheyenne Becker, 26, delivered a stillborn child on September 10, 2019, that medical professionals believed may have been exposed to drugs while she was pregnant. The death was ruled a homicide after an autopsy by the Kings County Coroner's Office found methamphetamine in the baby's system, police said. (Elassar, 8/9)

Kaiser Health News: As Crisis Grows, Farms Try To Balance Health Of Field Workers And Food Supply 

It’s a busy time for the tomato-producing farms in this part of the state. Farms have staffed up with hundreds of workers, most of whom are Latino. Some live locally. Others are migrant workers who travel from farm to farm, chasing the summer growing seasons. Still others come from Mexico or Central America on temporary agricultural visas to work at certain farms. But, this year, the season is taking place under a cloud of coronavirus worries that, for these agricultural workers, hit close to home. (Knight, 8/10)

One of the most powerful experiences for parents-to-be is seeing the image of their baby via ultrasound. But for blind parents, that moment was impossible. Now, however, sophisticated technology allows them to “see” their little ones before they are born by creating a 3-D image to be formed in the likeness of their baby’s face. (Bruno, 8/9)

Diana E.H. Russell, a leading feminist activist and scholar who popularized the term “femicide” to refer to the misogynist killing of women, and to distinguish these killings from other forms of homicide, died on July 28 at a medical facility in Oakland, Calif. She was 81. The cause was respiratory failure, said Esther D. Rothblum, a feminist scholar and friend. (Seelye, 8/6)