The figures announced by the federal drug enforcement agency about the opiate drug, which is 50 times stronger than heroin, are terrifying
American authorities seized in 2022 more fentanyl than it would take to kill the entire American population.
THE DEA explained how 50.6 million pills containing fentanyl and 4.5 million tons of fentanyl powder were seized during that year. It’s about corresponding quantity in “more than 379 million potentially lethal doses,” according to her calculations.
According to the agency’s press release, fentanyl, which accounted for only a small proportion of overdose deaths ten years ago, has today become “deadliest threat” in the country in terms of drug use.
“This is an extremely artificial opioid addictive and 50 times stronger than heroin. “Just two milligrams of fentanyl, a small amount that could be placed on the end of a pencil, is considered a potentially lethal dose,” he said.
The fentanyl is blamed for much of the more than 107,000 overdose deaths in the US between July 2021 and June 2022, according to official data.
As it is cheap and can be easily produced, fentanyl has replaced prescription opioids as well as heroin in the drug market.
According to the DEA, the main fentanyl traffickers in the US are the Mexican Sinaloa and New Generation Jalisco cartels.
The fentanyl they traffic is manufactured in Mexico, with chemicals that are “largely supplied to them from China,” the federal drug enforcement agency emphasized.
Some of it is trafficked in the form of copies of commonly prescribed prescription drugs such as Percocet, OxyContin and Xanax, according to the same source.
About 60% of fake fentanyl pills tested by the DEA contained a potentially lethal amount of the synthetic opioid.
RES-EMP
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With a wealth of experience honed over 4+ years in journalism, I bring a seasoned voice to the world of news. Currently, I work as a freelance writer and editor, always seeking new opportunities to tell compelling stories in the field of world news.
