What Is Fentanyl and Why Is It So Dangerous?thedigitalchaps

The opioid crisis has only intensified as more illicit drugs have entered the market. Drug overdose deaths reached a record high in 2021, with more than 100,000 people lost to the continuing epidemic, fueled by the potent synthetic opioid fentanyl. The drug, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, can be up to 50 times more potent than heroin and 100 times that of morphine. Illicit forms of fentanyl are mainly manufactured by drug cartels in Mexico and are spreading in the U.S.

In March, members of Congress introduced a bill that would add the veterinary tranquilizer xylazine to a list of controlled substances. The drug has worsened the fentanyl crisis as it has been showing up in drug users’ fentanyl supply at an alarming pace.