Substance use disorder

The Osceola County School District is moving to install vape detectors at 19 middle and high schools, funded by $191,885 from the county's opioid settlement. The school board is set to approve the agreement, which frames the detection program as an early intervention strategy targeting risk factors linked to substance use disorder among youth, consistent with the goals of opioid settlement spending.

Schools were selected based on high vaping-related referral data. Qualified technicians will install the devices, potentially outside school hours to limit disruption. Once operational, the detectors will send real-time alerts to staff, enabling quicker response, incident documentation, and referrals to cessation and prevention services.

The district has set measurable goals: a 25% reduction in vaping-related referrals compared to the 2024-2025 school year, and referring 100% of flagged students to school-based or community cessation programs. Officials also plan to track student engagement with those services. Parents and community members expressed support, citing growing concern about youth vaping and the need for early intervention.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear campaigned across South Carolina's Orangeburg and Charleston counties on Oct. 2, stumping for local Democratic candidates while fueling speculation about a possible 2028 presidential bid. He framed his pitch around having won two elections as a Democratic governor in a heavily Republican state, arguing liberal candidates need not avoid contentious issues such as transgender rights or diversity policies to win. Beshear said he has vetoed anti-diversity, anti-abortion-rights and anti-LGBTQ+ bills in Kentucky and urged Democrats to spend most of their time on bread-and-butter issues like roads, schools and healthcare, while speaking about hot-button topics in plain language rather than "advocacy speak."

He also called for constitutional changes banning partisan redistricting, imposing congressional and Supreme Court term limits, and tightening campaign finance rules. Beshear's visit came as South Carolina Sen. Mark Kelly and Rep. Ro Khanna also campaigned in the state the same weekend, ahead of its first-in-the-nation status on the 2028 Democratic primary calendar.