Photo Courtesy of DEA
By Forum Staff
U.S. Senator Charles Schumer announced a push to beat back “Rainbow Fentanyl,” which is the latest and perhaps darkest attempt by drug-traffickers and dealers to lure and addict young users to the very deadly drug.
Schumer said he will make the national funding push this week, as part of the must-pass budget vote that needs to occur to keep the government funded. Schumer said that in addition to the public warnings about this latest fentanyl ploy, his office was also briefed about the federal teams tasked with fighting this scourge. Schumer said these teams, 61 across the U.S, need sustained federal funds to win the larger fentanyl fight, contend with this latest and dangerous ‘rainbow’ tactic, and prepare for what might come next. Schumer said that drug-traffickers and dealers are well aware of the federal crackdown on the fentanyl supply chain and that they will stop at nothing to try and innovate new ways to push this deadly drug.
According to the Office of National Drug Control Policy and the CDC, the Overdose Response Strategy Team (ORS) is an unprecedented and unique collaboration between public health and public safety, created to help local communities reduce drug overdoses and save lives by sharing timely data, pertinent intelligence and evidence-based and innovative strategies. The ORS is implemented by teams made up of Drug Intelligence Officers and Public Health Analysts, who work together on drug overdose issues within and across sectors, states, and territories. By sharing information across sectors, the ORS is growing the body of evidence related to early warning signs and prevention strategies. The mission of the ORS is to help communities reduce fatal and non-fatal drug overdoses by connecting public health and public safety agencies, sharing information, and supporting evidence-based interventions.
In New York, the ORS team works across local, state and federal agencies to get ahead of fentanyl—from upending trafficking to informing public safety, public health, public education officials and more.
According to DEA, brightly-colored fentanyl is being seized in multiple forms, including pills, powder, and blocks that resembles sidewalk chalk. Despite claims that certain colors may be more potent than others, there is no indication through DEA’s laboratory testing that this is the case. Every color, shape, and size of fentanyl should be considered extremely dangerous.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 50 times more potent than heroin and 100 times more potent than morphine. Just two milligrams of fentanyl, which is equal to 10-15 grains of table salt, is considered a lethal dose. Without laboratory testing, there is no way to know how much fentanyl is concentrated in a pill or powder.
Fentanyl remains the deadliest drug threat facing this country. According to the CDC, 107,622 Americans died of drug overdoses in 2021, with 66 percent of those deaths related to synthetic opioids like fentanyl. Drug poisonings are the leading killer of Americans between the ages of 18 and 45. Fentanyl available in the United States is primarily supplied by two criminal drug networks, the Sinaloa Cartel and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG). Among New York State residents, the number of overdose deaths involving any opioid increased each year between 2010 and 2017, with an overall increase of 200.2 percent from 1,074 in 2010 to 3,224 in 2017, according to the State Health Department.
