Significant Increase In Fentanyl Overdoses

The number of overdoses caused by fentanyl has increased significantly in recent years, especially since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. The news came as many Republicans expressed concern over the flow of fentanyl over the border, especially from China.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the number of overdose deaths faced by 12-17-year-olds has more than doubled in the last four years.

The flow of fentanyl into the country has grown to the point in recent years that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) declared it a top national security threat.

The DHS said that the issue would only grow, as the number of Americans who died of drug overdoses crossed 100,000 in 2023 for the first time in the country’s history.

“While terrorists pose an enduring threat to the Homeland, drugs kill and harm far more people in the United States annually,” said the DHS report.

The report also specifically cited drugs manufactured in Mexico and brought into the U.S.

Last year in Joe Biden’s America, we lost 110,000 Americans to overdose deaths. That’s the equivalent of two Vietnam Wars.

We have to secure our border TODAY pic.twitter.com/iJQWc7kUe3

— Doug Burgum (@DougBurgum) August 18, 2023

The DHS report stated that about 75% of the overdose deaths are caused by synthetic opioids, of which fentanyl is a leading cause.

The same report also cited other effects of the drug trade, including “supporting violent criminal enterprises, money laundering and corruption that undermines the rule of law.”

The synthetic opioid has grown considerably in popularity in recent years. Fentanyl is much more powerful than traditional opioids, such as heroin, and has been mixed in with a number of other drugs.

The flow of fentanyl has been especially dangerous after large supplies have been passed over the border from China. The drug is lightweight and can be manufactured inexpensively.

Fentanyl has also been mixed with other drugs in recent years, such as Xylazine, also known as Tranq. Tranq is traditionally a veterinary drug. Videos of people on Tranq staggering around cities such as Philadelphia underscored the scale of the crisis.

Many Republicans in Congress link the relatively open border between the U.S. and Mexico and the ongoing drug transport and overdose issue.