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How a Self-Described ‘Junkie’ Rode Synthetic Drugs to Oblivion — and Fame

An Estonian addict could barely keep pace with the new drugs flooding the market. His terrifying accounts of the cruel toll they took on his body held his country in its grip.

© Meridith Kohut for The New York Times

The Estonian police used to respond to reports of people sniffing glue at these abandoned housing units. Now ultra-potent new synthetic drugs are keeping them busy.
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Trump Administration Backs Down on an Opioid Ban After Kratom Industry Lobbying

Health officials will now allow some levels of a powerful substance to remain in products marketed as natural. The change could help a G.O.P. donor facing wrongful death lawsuits.

© Nick Oxford for The New York Times

Banners promoting the sale of kratom products outside a smoke shop in Tulsa, Okla., earlier this year.
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