fentanyl
Fentanyl-related drugs permanently made criminal under bill passed by U.S. House
This story has been updated to clarify the cause of Zachary Cullen’s death. WASHINGTON — Lawmakers in the U.S. House passed bipartisan legislation Thursday in an effort to curb staggering overdose deaths from illegal fentanyl substances that are illicitly produced and up to 50 times stronger than heroin. The HALT Fentanyl Act, passed on a […]
Mexican cartel targeted by Biden administration in multiple fentanyl indictments
WASHINGTON — As illicit fentanyl seizures reach record numbers, the Biden administration on Friday announced “government-wide efforts” to counter narcotics trafficking, including criminally charging members of the Sinaloa Cartel operating out of Mexico and sanctioning Chinese producers of the chemicals used to make the synthetic drug. The Department of Justice unsealed indictments alleging fentanyl trafficking, […]
As opioids overdose deaths keep rising, report urges lawmakers to develop new approaches
WASHINGTON — Lawmakers should view America’s staggering opioid crisis, including the rise of illicit fentanyl, through an “ecosystems” approach, argues a RAND Corporation report published Thursday. That means they should examine the gaps and interconnections among emergency response, data collection, education, treatment, housing and law enforcement, the report advises. The 600-page volume — which the […]
Sanders announces fentanyl trafficking legislation, new “drug czar” for Arkansas
The Arkansas Legislature will consider legislation that would charge drug traffickers with murder if someone dies of an overdose after receiving drugs from them, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Attorney General Tim Griffin announced at a Friday press conference. Fentanyl traffickers would be sentenced to between 20 and 60 years in prison with the possibility […]
Funding needed to curb fentanyl smuggling at ports of entry, administration officials say
WASHINGTON — Biden administration officials at a U.S. Senate hearing Wednesday on the deadly illicit drug fentanyl said they need more money for better screening technology at ports of entry at the Southern border. They also said the U.S. needs to keep pressure on China due to its role in the sale of chemicals used […]
Biden in State of the Union speech to call for bipartisan action on fentanyl crisis
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Tuesday night is expected in his State of the Union address to call on Congress to work with the administration to address in a bipartisan manner the fentanyl crisis, administration officials said on a call with reporters. Biden will call for expanded access to opioid-related addiction treatment and announce […]
U.S. House Judiciary’s debut hearing on the border centers on blame for fentanyl crisis
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans on the Judiciary Committee blamed the Biden administration for fentanyl drug smuggling at the U.S.-Mexico border during a Wednesday hearing. Chair Jim Jordan of Ohio also blamed U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for the number of migrants at the border, and said there are already hundreds of […]
U.S. House GOP takes aim at fake pills containing deadly fentanyl sold on social media
WASHINGTON — On a June 2020 morning, Amy Neville entered her son’s bedroom to wake him for an orthodontist appointment. Fourteen-year-old Alex didn’t wake up. He died of fentanyl poisoning after taking a counterfeit pill he bought from someone he met on Snapchat, Neville told GOP lawmakers Wednesday during a roundtable discussion of the role […]
Russellville ER doctor recognized for treating opioid patients throughout Arkansas
During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Dr. Kristin Martin saw more struggles and deaths from drug overdoses than from the coronavirus, she said Tuesday at an Arkansas Foundation for Medical Care event honoring her efforts to alleviate the ongoing opioid epidemic throughout the state. Martin is an emergency department physician and the CEO and medical […]