Learn About Fentanyl

WE ARE WARNING YOU NOW!

At the onset of this crisis, when government action was falling short, families impacted by fentanyl poisoning stepped up, determined to raise the alarm and protect others. We started this work because we could not stand by while more died to this deadly, deceptive drug. Through the voices of thousands of affected families, we have urged our country and government to act. Today, we are beginning to see change. Awareness is growing, and assistance is increasing. But the crisis is far from over.

Every day, people continue to die. The cost of human life is staggering, and even when deaths appear to dip for a time, the losses remain unacceptable. We cannot stop. We will not stop. The fight against this scourge must continue. Illicit fentanyl, 100x more potent than morphine, 50x stronger than heroin, is manufactured by drug cartels and trafficked into our country. It is sold alone or secretly mixed into other street drugs, or pressed into counterfeit pills that look like legitimate medications. Its extreme potency makes these drugs more addictive, more dangerous, and, too often, instantly deadly.

JUST TWO MILLIGRAMS CAN KILL

JUST TWO MILLIGRAMS CAN KILL - AND DEADLIER VARIANTS ARE SREADING

Just two milligrams of fentanyl, a few grains of salt, can kill. One counterfeit pill, one mistake, one exposure can leave a family shattered.

Even deadlier variants, like carfentanil (100x more potent than fentanyl; 10,000x stronger than morphine), are now circulating in the U.S. 0.02 milligrams, invisible to the eye, can be fatal.

U.S. deaths linked to carfentanil and analogs are rising. Street drugs are more unpredictable and deadly than ever, and the threat is growing.

WHERE DOES FENTANYL COME FROM?

Chemical precursors from China are shipped to Mexican drug cartels, who manufacture the fentanyl in clandestine labs and traffic it across the U.S.-Mexico border. China's chemical companies are incentivized by the Chinese Communist Party to continue producing and exporting these precursor chemicals, knowing full well they will be used to manufacture poison aimed at American citizens. This is a form of silent chemical warfare, and the United States is a direct target. However, China's role does not stop with chemicals: China has also led in laundering cartel profits. Using complex money laundering networks through Chinese banking systems and criminal syndicates, they help cartels clean billions of dollars in drug proceeds, making China not only the enabler of fentanyl production but also the biggest cartel in the world when it comes to manufacturing, distributing, and laundering fentanyl money. On the ground, Mexican cartels have become more powerful, organized, and dangerous than ever. Their presence in Mexico is deeply entrenched, corrupting officials and controlling entire regions. In the United States, their networks now reach into every state, with creative and constantly evolving trafficking methods, distribution pipelines, and street-level networks. These cartels are not static, they are continually innovating: using social media to sell counterfeit pills, employing sophisticated smuggling techniques, and adapting their deadly products in real-time. Their grip on U.S. cities and small towns is expanding, creating unprecedented public safety risks on both sides of the border. Illicit fentanyl is not just a drug crisis, it is a national security threat that continues to grow.

Source: DOJ

FENTANYL IS THE LEADING CAUSE OF DEATH

FENTANYL IS THE LEADING CAUSE OF DEATH - AND CHILDREN ARE DYING AT UNPRECENTED RATES

Fentanyl poisoning is now the #1 killer of Americans 18 to 45, more than car crashes, suicide, or guns. And now, children and teens 17 and under are dying at record rates. Many are not drug users, some are victims of accidental exposure: infants, toddlers, and kids at home or in public spaces. This is an emergency. We cannot allow this devastation to continue.

SOMEONE DIES IN THE U.S. FROM FENTANYL POISONING EVERY 5 MINUTES

Every 5 minutes in the U.S., another life is lost to fentanyl poisoning. Almost 300 people die every day; sons, daughters, mothers, fathers.
Every 5 minutes, another family is shattered.

NO ONE IS IMMUNE

Fentanyl poisoning strikes every community, urban, rural, and suburban.
Victims include:

Young people experimenting
Adults with no drug history
The unsuspecting
Toddlers and infants accidentally exposed
People seeking drugs

This epidemic does not discriminate.

THINK AGAIN

If you think, "This won't happen to us," think again. Thousands of families believed the same, until fentanyl took someone they loved.

One pill. One mistake. One life gone. Please protect your loved ones.

THE "ANTIDOTE"

THE "ANTIDOTE" - NALOXONE

Naloxone is a life-saving medication that can reverse fentanyl poisoning by blocking fentanyl’s effects in the brain. It restores breathing and can save lives if given quickly enough. If you suspect someone has been poisoned by fentanyl, even if you’re unsure use naloxone immediately and call 911. Seconds matter. Acting fast can mean the difference between life and death. Because fentanyl and carfentanil are so powerful, multiple doses of naloxone may be needed and tragically, not all poisonings can be reversed. We do not tell people about naloxone to encourage drug use, we tell them because, right now, it is the only tool we have to try and save a life in this crisis. We live in a time where everyone should consider carrying naloxone, and at a minimum, everyone should know how to use it. You could save a loved one, a friend, or even a stranger. Naloxone is critical, but prevention must always come first. There is no safe amount of fentanyl.

Source: CDC

POISONING VS. OVERDOSE

POISONING VS. OVERDOSE - KNOW THE DIFFERENCE

We refer to fentanyl deaths as poisonings, not overdoses.
Here’s the difference:
An overdose occurs when a person takes a dose of a substance, drug or medicine, that is larger than the recommended or usual amount. The person knowingly takes the substance, but the amount taken results in harmful or fatal consequences. This can be accidental or intentional.
Poisoning occurs when someone is unknowingly exposed to fentanyl through fake pills, laced drugs, or mislabeled substances. The deception is what kills them.
Illicit fentanyl deaths are poisonings, not overdoses.

Victims take a counterfeit pill believing it’s a real prescription, but it’s laced with fentanyl.
Victims use cocaine or marijuana unaware it contains fentanyl.
Victims buy Adderall® or Xanax® off the street, but it’s a fake pill with fentanyl.

China is directly targeting Americans with fentanyl. This began with fentanyl disguised in counterfeit pills that looked like legitimate prescriptions. Now, it is also being deceptively mixed into other street drugs.
Fentanyl poisoning is driven by deception, and that is why the word “poisoning” matters. It tells the truth about what is happening: these are not ordinary drug overdoses, they are a chemical attack through deception.
Even for those addicted to fentanyl, it is still a poison.
Even if a person is struggling with addiction and seeks out illicit fentanyl, the fentanyl they are using is not a regulated pharmaceutical. It is a black-market chemical weapon produced by China and cartels, purposely designed to:
Create faster addiction, by increasing potency and variability
Cause fatal poisonings, through unpredictable dosing and deadly variants like carfentanil
This is not an “accident of addiction.” This is chemical deception:
The user cannot know the dose, cannot know the potency, and cannot know if a counterfeit product will kill them this time.
Every use is a game of Russian roulette, even for a person addicted.
That is why we call it poisoning, because the product is designed to deceive and destroy. The intent is not to maintain addiction, the intent is to cause faster addiction or death.
This is why the word “poisoning” matters, even for those in active use.

WHERE DO THE CHiLDREN GO

WHERE DO THE CHILDREN GO

THE HIDDEN FACTS AND WHO PAYS THE PRICE

As the fentanyl death toll rises, so does the number of grandparents raising grandchildren, and the burden on foster care and social services is growing. Did you ever stop to think: where do the children go when mom or dad dies from fentanyl poisoning? Grandparents have always stepped up when tragedy strikes a family. But now, across America, entire generations of older adults, often on fixed incomes, are raising the children that the middle generations have left behind. At the same time, social services and foster care systems are being overwhelmed, with not enough resources, not enough foster families, and too many children in need of homes.

Families shattered
Children grieving and displaced
Grandparents carrying unimaginable burdens
Social systems strained to the breaking point

The ripple effects of fentanyl poisoning extend far beyond the individual lost. They touch entire families, entire communities — and future generations.

BEYOND THE HUMAN TRAGEDY

BEYOND THE HUMAN TRAGEDY - THE ECONOMIC TOLL

STAGGERING

What most Americans do not see is the enormous financial cost this crisis is placing on our nation:

Human services and foster care systems
Healthcare and emergency response
Law enforcement and criminal justice
Overburdened hospitals and first responders
Lost workforce productivity
Insurance costs
Funeral and burial expenses

The hidden economic cost of the fentanyl crisis is now being measured in the trillions of dollars, and it continues to rise each year. For every life lost, there is a ripple effect of grief, economic hardship, and strain on public services, impacting families, communities, and taxpayers nationwide. This is not just a drug problem. It is a human crisis, a public health emergency, and an economic disaster that is reshaping our nation.

LET'S BREAK IT DOWN

It is important to clarify how illicit fentanyl is devastating Americans.

Illicit Fentanyl is sold through illegal drug markets for its heroin-like effect. Fentanyl is mixed with heroin and/or cocaine as a combination product-with or without the user's knowledge-to increase its euphoric effects.

Illicit Fentanyl is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine.

2 mg of fentanyl can cause sudden death and can be a lethal dose.

The onset of poisoning caused by fentanyl can occur at a much quicker rate (sometimes within seconds) than heroin. In the majority of cases, fentanyl poisoning appears very similar to other opioid overdoses. However, atypical symptoms due to fentanyl have been reported, including:

Immediate blue or grey lips
Body stiffening/seizure like activity
Foaming at the mouth
Confusion before becoming unresponsive

Death by fentanyl is a form of suffocation. It shuts down your neuro and respiratory system and you can die in minutes or even seconds. Fentanyl causes respiratory depression called "wooden chest syndrome".
Fentanyl precursors are produced in China and distributed by Mexican Cartels to the United States. Together Chinese and Mexican cartels launder the trillions of drug dollars made from the sale of fentanyl.

Cartels/Distributors mix fentanyl into other drugs as a combination product and manufacture counterfeit pills containing fentanyl that look like a prescription drug. These drugs are made in clandestine Mexican labs.

Fentanyl has been found in virtually all street drugs today including Cocaine, Heroin, Xanax, Oxy, Percocet, Adderall and Marijuana.

There are many fentanyl analogues (precursor chemicals).  Fentanyl analogues are used to strengthen drug potency. Carfentanil is a fentanyl analogue that can kill 10 times faster than base fentanyl.

Illicit Fentanyl is more addictive than any other drug. Deceptively manufactured to disguise the dangers. This poison has changed the drug landscape and fentanyl deaths continue to climb at an exponential rate.

DEA reports that 4 in 10 counterfeit pills manufactured with fentanyl are deadly.

Every dose taken of fentanyl is like playing Russian Roulette.

There is a misconception that fentanyl poisonings occur only with addicted users.

Unsuspecting people die from fentanyl poisoning daily. There are no age restriction or socioeconomic boundaries for who fentanyl kills. In America fentanyl is killing all ages. Toddlers, youth, middle aged and seniors. The primary death rate occurring in victims 18 to 45.

Fentanyl has been Emergency and temporary scheduled as a class one substance. A permanent scheduling has not occurred.

Fentanyl seizures in the US are estimated to be 10% to 15% of what is entering the country. Seizures at this rate do not affect cartels. The bulk of manufactured fentanyl flooding into the country is to be sold. Seizures at the current rate do not affect Cartels.

Illicit Fentanyl is prevalent and easy to obtain.

Illicit Fentanyl is sold on e-commerce and social media sites. Fentanyl is purchased on these sites and delivered as easily as a pizza can be delivered to your home. Cartel's creatively lure and sell to our youth through social media distributing in exchange for quick money.

The DEA is the primary government agency that is publicly addressing the dangers of fentanyl. The United States government has not put out a public warning to American's or addressed the U.S.-China-Mexico relationship as Americans continue to die.

Fentanyl is more dangerous than other drugs we have seen before. Fentanyl has changed the drug landscape. The prescription opioid epidemic caused high rates of addiction. Although, people that experienced substance use disorder still had time to search out recovery options and potentially survive. Fentanyl is more addictive and is killing faster. Recovery from fentanyl is often not an option. The rate of death from fentanyl is skyrocketing. There is no socio-economic boundary for fentanyl death. All ages and classes are attacked.  Hundreds of thousands of pounds of illicitly manufactured fentanyl is imported into the U.S. every year, enough to kill billions of people. Fentanyl has the capabilities of a true weapon of mass destruction, and discussion of this classification in Congress is limited despite the efforts of chemical analysts. Fentanyl, whether pure or deceptively made into other drugs, is killing our family members. Fentanyl is now the #1 cause of death for Americans aged 18 to 45. Over 100,000 people died from in the U.S. between April 2020 and 2021. Fentanyl fatalities increased by almost 50% in 12 months. Teen death is up by 94%. Cartels are taking advantage of our boarder situations and our lack of response to this crisis. Fentanyl is a crisis that should be prioritized to address immediately.

Almost, all fentanyl awareness organizations actively fighting fentanyl are started by families affected by fentanyl. Awareness and prevention can save lives. Educating and informing the public is a priority. Time is of the essence. This is a national emergency.