Fentanyl, a highly potent and lethal opioid, has infiltrated all corners of the country, leaving a trail of devastation in its wake.
As authorities continue to seize larger quantities of this dangerous narcotic, the tragic reality is that fentanyl-related fatalities keep climbing at an alarming rate. This sweeping epidemic, sparing no region or demographic, has shaken the nation as it grapples with the harsh consequences of addiction and easy access to this deadly drug.
U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) is urging the Biden administration to do something about the problem, tweeting, "Every state is a border state. In just the last two years, under the Biden administration, fentanyl deaths in my district in northwest Georgia have increased over 350%. Americans are dying, and Democrats don’t even bother to show up for work."
The Colorado Attorney General's Office revealed in a recent report that the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) had made significant strides in combating the fentanyl crisis throughout the nation. In 2022, the DEA seized an astounding 50.6 million counterfeit prescription pills laced with the deadly opioid fentanyl, alongside more than 10,000 pounds of pure fentanyl powder.
The total amount confiscated was enough to produce approximately 379 million lethal doses, enough to take the life of every single American. Compared to the previous year's efforts, the DEA has demonstrated exceptional progress, having seized over twice the number of fentanyl-laced pills.
In 2022 alone, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)'s Rocky Mountain Division confiscated a record-breaking amount of this deadly substance -- nearly 2 million fentanyl pills and more than 150 pounds of fentanyl powder. These staggering numbers, however, are believed to represent only a fraction of the total amount of fentanyl being trafficked in this region. This concerning trend underscores the need for continued vigilance in combating the opioid crisis and protecting communities from the devastating effects of illicit drug use.
In 2021 alone, a staggering 107,622 Americans lost their lives to drug overdoses. This devastating death toll serves as a stark reminder of the escalating drug crisis in the nation. Even more distressingly, the report reveals that over two-thirds of these overdose fatalities were caused by synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, a powerful substance that has increasingly become a grave public health concern.
The number of deaths due to fentanyl poisoning in the U.S. saw a dramatic increase over the past two decades. In 1999, 730 people died from fentanyl overdose. However, by 2002, that number had almost doubled to 1,295. By 2014, the death toll from fentanyl had climbed to 5,544.
In 2015 and 2016, the number of deaths increased exponentially for a two-year period, with 9,580 and 19,413 fatalities respectively. Unfortunately these numbers would only continue to climb into 2020, where it is estimated that 56,516 people lost their lives due to an opioid-related death involving fentanyl.
