The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) reported last month that federal authorities seized more than 379 million potentially deadly doses of fentanyl last year, enough to kill every American.

Between 2020 and 2021, fentanyl overdoses have become the leading cause of death for adults between 18 and 45. The roughly 79,000 deaths attributed to fentanyl are higher than deaths from car accidents, suicide, COVID-19, or all other drug overdoses combined for this age group, according to Families Against Fentanyl (FAF).

Illicit fentanyl kills 187 Americans every day, FAF reports.

A New Approach?

Given these and other sobering statistics regarding this dangerous drug, last fall a bipartisan coalition of 18 attorneys general, led by Florida’s attorney general Ashley Moody, sent a letter to President Biden proposing an “unorthodox” solution to the fentanyl crisis.

“We ask that you consider classifying illegal fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction,” they wrote.

“Indeed, given fentanyl’s lethality, the amounts being interdicted and seized are inconsistent with what one would expect from drug trafficking activity and are indicative of either purposeful conspiracy to murder Americans or an effort to stockpile a dangerous chemical weapon,” the signatories explained.

The letter offers statistics showing that fentanyl deaths increased in Florida by 59 percent in 2020.

This action would allow the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Defense (DOD) to apply their resources to the problem.

“Thinking about curbing the problem in different, new ways may disrupt what the foreign companies and drug cartels involved are doing or at least make it more expensive or difficult,” the group wrote.

Protect Your Kids

The frightening thing about fentanyl is that most deaths are accidental, stemming from illegal drugs made to look like prescription pills and sold online and through social media, the DEA reports.

Here are some things you can do to help keep your children away from this potentially deadly drug.

• Keep all drugs locked up. Check out more about the National Family Partnership’s Lock Your Meds campaign here.
• Learn about the dangers of fentanyl and how to spot signs of abuse. Learn about how to use the antidote naloxone in case of an overdose.
• Talk to kids about the dangers of fentanyl. Stress the fact that a prescription drug they get from friends or online might contain fentanyl no matter what the sellers claim.