JOHNSON, Vt. — It's hard for me to express the amount of admiration I have for Dawn and Greg Tatro.

After losing their daughter to an overdose, Dawn and Greg Tatro set out to not only help people in recovery but also change how it's done.

The organization, Jenna's Promise, is named in honor of their daughter.

"One just said to me again tonight, he goes, 'I used to come to Johnson (Vermont) for drugs.' Now, he goes, 'I come to Johnson for recovery.' He goes, 'It's pretty awesome," Dawn said.

The Tatros' dreams of expanding how they help people have expanded over the course of a year. They now have a café that employs their residents and a health center.

"Once you get that veil of addiction off their, off their, face and you see the real person come out, it's incredible," said Greg.

The best part they say is how the town has embraced its residents. By going to the cafe, the people are actively participating in their recovery. It's a true, "It takes a village" mentality, playing out in real-time.

"It's cleaning the town up," said Dawn. "It's helping people and, uh, and it's creating this community."

Will Eberle is the executive director of the Vermont Association of Mental Health and Recovery.

"Unfortunately, we're still tracking at a very high rate of overdose deaths in Vermont. Currently, we have, according to our latest statistics, 151 overdose fatalities in Vermont through August of this year, and around 80% of those have included fentanyl," Eberle said.

There's no national data out yet for 2022, but with the prevalence of fentanyl across the nation, experts like Eberle are expecting it to be another year of tragically high numbers nationwide.

However, just like Dawn and Greg have seen, Will says the good news is that he's seeing less stigma as communities step up.

"Over time, it's starting to become sort of the community's business to work on these things more than the recovery sectors business, which is very heartening to see," he said.

The Tatros and Eberle believe the only way to completely flip the script on addiction and overdose deaths is for everyone to realize they have a role and to invest in the people and the places impacted.

They're hoping next year, even more communities see the value in the people working to make their lives better.

"It seems so simple, but to believe in someone, it's sometimes really what they need," said Dawn.

Merck said Monday it is seeking U.S. Food and Drug Administration emergency use authorization for its experimental antiviral COVID-19 treatment, molnupiravir.

If authorization is granted, the drug, made by Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, would be the first oral antiviral treatment to fight COVID-19. It comes in capsule form.

Merck said it is asking for authorization for the capsules to treat infected adults who are at risk of progressing to severe COVID-19 disease or hospitalization. Its submission is based on a study that was stopped at the interim point because the drug was working so well in more than 700 patients randomly assigned to take either molnupiravir or a placebo.

"At the interim analysis, molnupiravir reduced the risk of hospitalization or death by approximately 50%; 7.3% of patients who received molnupiravir were either hospitalized or died through Day 29 following randomization, compared with 14.1% of placebo-treated patients," the company said in a statement.

"Through Day 29, no deaths were reported in patients who received molnupiravir, as compared to eight deaths in patients who received placebo." None of the volunteers in the trial had been vaccinated.

"The extraordinary impact of this pandemic demands that we move with unprecedented urgency, and that is what our teams have done by submitting this application for molnupiravir to the FDA within 10 days of receiving the data," Merck CEO and President Robert Davis said in the statement.

Data from the trial has not yet been peer-reviewed or published.

"Merck has been producing molnupiravir at risk and expects to produce 10 million courses of treatment by the end of 2021, with more courses expected to be produced in 2022," the company said.

It has already sold 1.7 million treatment courses to the U.S. government. The company said it will offer tiered pricing to provide access around the world, and will work with generic drug manufacturers to speed availability to low- and middle-income countries.

At a White House COVID-19 briefing last week, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, called the trial results "very encouraging," but said the drug needs close scrutiny by the FDA.

"It is very important that this now must go through the usual process of careful examination of the data by the Food and Drug Administration both for effectiveness, but also for safety, because whenever you introduce a new compound, safety is very important," Fauci said, noting that vaccines remain "our best tools against COVID-19" by preventing infection and illness, rather than treating it.

America has an opioid problem and more mothers are struggling with sobriety.

“At the height of my addiction, I could take anywhere from 20 or 30 Percocets a day if I had them,” said Amanda Martin, who’s opioid addiction started shortly after the death of a child.

“My third born son died shortly after he was born and that just made a huge impact on me,” Martin said.

During her fourth and fifth pregnancies, Martin, a former nurse, started taking pain pills which she says impacted her other children’s health.

“They both had delayed speech patterns,” she said. “My youngest son that I took the most opiates with, he did have some developmental delays.”

Martin’s opioid addiction eventually led to heroin use and ultimately put her in jail.

New research shows during the past two decades, four times as many pregnant women are struggling with opioid use disorder and almost eight times as many infants are diagnosed with opioid withdrawal.

Now, health experts say that many are having a hard time getting proper treatment.

“Hospitals are providing variable care,” said Stephen Patrick, MD, director of the Vanderbilt Center for Child Health Policy. "And we see systems in communities really stretched, everything from local community hospitals to the child welfare system."

He says every 15 minutes in America, an infant is born having an opioid withdrawal, which accounts for half a billion dollars in healthcare expenditures nationwide.

“This year it looks like we’re on record pace once again to have to have a record-number of opioid overdoses,” Patrick said.

While the COVID-19 crisis has made it harder for pregnant women to get into treatment, Patrick says this is a fixable problem, but that America currently lacks to funding and political will to change it.

“As we start to usher in a new administration, I really hope the unique needs of pregnant women and infants affected by the opioid crisis are front and center,” he said.

More help is something Martin agrees with, especially during the COVID crisis.

“We see a lot of people coming in that are relapsing just simply because of the pandemic,” said Martin.

Now three-and-a-half years sober, Martin is working as a recovery coach for Vertava Health in Mississippi and encouraging pregnant moms battling opioid addiction to get help, no matter how hard it may be.

“There’s help out there,” she said. “And there’s non-judgmental places that you can come and you can get your whole life together and never have to live that way.”

The Davis family likes to reminisce in photos of their world travels. Carrie Davis is the daughter of Jim and Paula Davis. They call themselves the three musketeers because they’ve traveled to nearly all the continents together. However, their wings were recently clipped after Jim was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.

“What are some of your hobbies?" Carrie asked her father.

"Hobbies...," Jim contemplated before Carrie helped refresh his memory with some charades of herself fishing.

"Fly fishing," Jim said. "There we go. Thank goodness. I would have forgotten that I was doing that.”

Alzheimer’s is a degenerative disease of the brain that affects memory, awareness, social conversation and speech. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, more than 6 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s.

Carrie and Paula say they’ve noticed some drastic differences in what Jim can remember, but his humor still shines through.

“You heard the gorgeous part, didn't you?" Jim said. "She was talking to me."

They say they need to embrace who he is today, celebrating the fact that he is always very present. Humor is what gets them through difficult times. And even though they’re aware his Alzheimer's will continue to get worse, they’re hopeful Jim can make a difference for future generations.

Jim has been involved in two clinical trials since his diagnosis. Dr. Jack Klapper from Mile High Research Center is his neurologist.

“We've been all-in on the trials because, I mean, in my thought, what is there to lose?" Carrie said.

Carrie and Paula say they want to encourage other families dealing with Alzheimer’s to get involved since it impacts so many people and is a devastating disease that’s often inherited.

“In the five years that we've been doing these trials, we've never missed one appointment," Paula said. "He's committed. I'm committed. I am really committed, because you can't take this lightly.”

Significant progress has been made in recent years regarding Alzheimer’s research. A treatment called Aduhelm was approved by the FDA in June of this year. Kristen Clifford is a chief program officer for the Alzheimer’s Association.

“Aduhelm is the newly approved treatment for mild cognitive impairment due to Alzheimer's and mild Alzheimer's dementia," Cllifford said. "The Alzheimer's Association welcomes the accelerated approval from the FDA at the helm, as this is the first treatment that addresses the underlying biology of the disease and not just the disease symptoms.”

However, the treatment has come with some controversy. It is not covered by insurance. Some families are hesitant to pay for a treatment that they fear will not be effective and some doctors remain skeptical.

“A lot of my fellow neurologists and Alzheimer's doctors are probably not going to use it, because they didn't think it was that good,” Dr. Klapper said.

Nonetheless, the Alzheimer’s Association stresses that Aduhelm has FDA approval. The nonprofit encourages patients to have informed conversations with their healthcare professionals.

“The Alzheimer’s Association is dedicated to eliminating barriers to make sure that anyone who could potentially benefit from the treatment does have access to it,” Clifford said.

One thing everyone can agree on is optimism that we are making great progress in the treatment of Alzheimer’s.

“I think we will end up at some point like we are today with AIDS that we might have multiple drugs combined into one injection as a treatment, not just one thing, but maybe two or three different things," Dr. Klapper said.

For now, Paula and Kristen are appreciating every day they have Jim.

“He’s not doing very well, but he's happy," Paula said. "That's the one thing I am so grateful for. You can see that he's happy.”

And they're still getting in laughs whenever they can.

“When we meet someone, I say, 'Hey, just so you know, my dad has Alzheimer's,'" Carrie said. "And he usually says..."

"I do?” Jim said.

A new treatment for COVID-19 is in the works.

Dr. Linda Gorgos, of Santa Fe, New Mexico, is heading the trial for the experimental antiviral drug called Molnupiravir. She says the medication shuts the virus down so that it cannot replicate or make copies of itself.

"The idea is that you try to shut the infection down early, before it can even set itself up or if in the off chance that you have already gotten infected, it will make the illness milder," Dr. Gorgos said. "It is really an exciting option to have to offer people something as prevention because we haven't had that before outside of vaccination."

It's an oral pill, so you won't have to receive an injection. In fact, its primary use is for people who don't have the COVID-19 vaccine.

"We know that people who are already vaccinated have that level of protection against getting sick with COVID-19 and getting infected," Dr. Gorgos said.

So how often do you have to take the treatment for it to be effective? Dr. Gorgos said participants in the trial will take the medication orally for four or five days to test the effects.

She says the trial is already in advanced stages, "COVID prevention is really exciting for us, and we're excited to have the opportunity to bring that science to New Mexico."

The clinical trial is currently only accepting people 18 and older. You must be in a household of 10 people or less to be eligible.

Watch the video above for more on this story.

A South Carolina animal shelter hosted a canine wedding Thursday to support donations for the new Have a Heart Heartworm Treatment Fund and raise awareness to adopt shelter dogs.

Greenville County Animal Care in South Carolina hosted a livestream of the ceremony for Sassy and Spero.

Click the video player above to watch the full ceremony.

The event was planned by Wedding Festivals and Upstate Bridal Association, according to the shelter.

Sassy and Spero have been together since Sassy started her heartworm treatment, according to the shelter.

"Every heartworm positive dog will have their treatment covered in full, making it easier than ever to adopt a heartworm positive dog," the shelter posted on Facebook.

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This tradition of doggy weddings has gone on for multiple years, with last year's couple being Honey and Duke.

This content is imported from Facebook.
You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.

The pandemic has brought structural racism in health care to the surface, not just through COVID-19 infections, deaths and access to care, but also within perceptions.

“We were really, really, you know, shocked to see the influence of discrimination on the perception of discrimination and on people's receipt of care,” said Carl V. Hill, Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer at the Alzheimer's Association.

The annual Alzheimer’s Association report released Tuesday also included a look for the first time at experiences of communities of color and perspectives of the disease and dementia care.

They found two thirds of Black Americans believe it’s harder for them to get excellent care. Native Americans, Hispanic and Asian Americans have similar feelings.

“As people feel like they will be treated unfairly in a health care setting, they're less likely to go and seek care, right, and so we know that delayed diagnosis or misdiagnosis is a huge factor for the disparities that we see,” said Hill.

Diverse communities also see bias in dementia research, and many don't trust a future cure would be equal.

“So, working with organizations that represent the well-being of, for example, African Americans and Latinos, so that we can create trust you know, so we can become trustworthy and provide resources as they relate to education and awareness, or care and support, to those communities,” said Hill.

The Alzheimer’s Association is also working to improve cultural competence and diversity within health care.

African Americans and Hispanics were found to be up to twice as likely to have Alzheimer’s or another form of dementia. More than 6 million seniors are living with the disease.

Seeking out mental health treatment is a major first step, often followed by that all-too-familiar question, "How am I going to pay for this?"

The cost of a therapy session ranges, depending on your access to health care coverage and even where you live in the country. But experts say, don’t let it be a hindrance. 

The Affordable Care Act requires some insurers to offer coverage for mental health services. But just like any other treatment, there could be stipulations like using in-network providers for full coverage. So it’s best to get familiar with your plan. 

And if you don’t have insurance, there are still options for affordable help.

"There are clinics out there who will try to work with you. And will do scaled pay. And for patients who really have zero resources at all, there are clinics within the county that will care for you for free, provide medications for free, they typically tend to work more closely with the homeless. But those are still options," said Dr. Eric French, medical director of adult psychiatry at the Medical Center of Aurora.

"Group support is often very useful, especially for individuals who don't have a lot of support already built in. And it can, in the case of some illnesses, it can take the place of psychotherapy," said Dr. Flavia Desouza, a board certified psychiatrist and assistant professor at Howard University. 

"There is an emergence of mental health services that are also offered in church settings as well. Sometimes colleges or universities will have therapists in training, who have much cheaper rates and who are being supervised by someone. So that can also be another option," suggested Nii Addy, a neuroscientist and host of the Yale University Podcast Addy Hour. 

There’s also findtreatment.gov, a search engine run by the federal government that can direct you to affordable options near you. When it comes to medication, you have to shop around. Experts recommend price comparison sites like GoodRX. And groups like the National Alliance on Mental Illness which can serve as a road map to affordable options.

"NAMI and other places can actually facilitate some of that conversation, to make sure that people do get plugged into those resources," said Addy. 

While it may take some homework and research, experts agree the payoff could be worth it in the long run.

This story originally reported by Amber Strong on Newsy.com.