The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has issued a public safety alert regarding an increase in lethality and availability of prescription pills containing fentanyl and methamphetamine.
According to the alert counterfeit pills – being mass-produced by criminal drug networks – are being seized by the DEA and law enforcement at record rates.
The number of DEA-seized counterfeit pills with fentanyl has jumped nearly 430 percent since 2019. DEA lab testing reveals that 2 out of every 5 pills with fentanyl contain a potentially lethal dose.
Data from the North Dakota Violent Death Reporting System (NDVDRS), indicates the state has recorded more than 250 drug overdose deaths since January 2019, of which a majority were opioid-related, many involving fentanyl.
Grand Forks is seeing an uptick in opioid drug overdoses. During the first seven months of 2021 the GFPD recorded 37 suspected O-D’s…and three opioid overdose deaths. Officers have also administered the overdose reverse medication naloxone 19 times this year – and the fire department eight times.
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