The Drug Enforcement Administration this week announced they’ve taken the equivalent of more than 36 million fatal doses of Fentanyl off the streets through the agency’s One Pill Can Kill initiative. Fentanyl remains the nation’s deadliest drug threat.
The DEA says it only takes a miniscule amount of the synthetic opioid to cause a fatal reaction. In Arizona alone, more than five people die every day from opioid overdoses with fentanyl involved in the majority of cases, according to state health officials.
The DEA launched it’s One Pill Can Kill initiative in 2021 in an effort to educate the public about the dangers of the drug, which is now being produced for the black market in rainbow colors, a growing concern as far as attracting young people. The DEA says drug traffickers use social media to advertise and conduct illicit sales.
They’ve even developed a code using emojis to attract teens and kids, something the DEA says parents should be more aware of. In 2017, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey declared a public health emergency due to rising opioid deaths. Since then, state health officials say the problem has only worsened.