Friend,

Yesterday the Biden Administration officially declared fentanyl combined with xylazine as an “emerging threat” in the United States: [link removed] And they will roll out a plan to combat it over the next 90 days.

Xylazine is a sedative drug that has been increasingly detected in fatal overdoses in some parts of the country.

We are also concerned about the rise of xylazine and the overdose crisis. But we know a public health approach is the best way to save lives, not more punishment.

Currently, xylazine is not a controlled substance. Unfortunately, we’re worried that the Biden Administration will move toward prohibiting it with harsh enforcement that will criminalize people instead of helping them.

Criminalizing xylazine, including scheduling it on the federal Control Substances Act (CSA), will likely result in an even more unknown and potentially dangerous drug supply. This will cost lives.

Simply put: crackdowns put us in a game of whack-a-mole. When we try to eradicate one drug, a new one comes up. Often, it is a drug that consumers are not prepared for or has unpredictable effects. As a result, it creates more harms, because people who use drugs are not aware of what they are using or how strong it is.

Instead of repeating the mistakes of the past, the Biden Administration and other policymakers can reduce the harms of xylazine with a public health approach including:

--Increased access to xylazine test strips and other lifesaving overdose prevention services. This includes greater access to the overdose reversal drug naloxone [link removed], drug checking tools like fentanyl test strips [link removed], syringe service programs [link removed] and overdose prevention centers [link removed]

--Fact-based public education about xylazine for people who may be accidentally exposed to xylazine-adulterated drugs.

--Expanded addiction services and social supports, including evidence-based treatment and recovery services [link removed]

--Easier access to medications like methadone and buprenorphine to treat opioid use disorder since most people exposed to xylazine are using opioid drugs: [link removed]

--Fund further research into xylazine, its potential harms and benefits, and potential antagonists that could reverse xylazine-involved overdoses (similar to the way naloxone can reverse opioid-involved overdoses). We also need to learn which treatments may be most effective for people who become dependent on xylazine.

--We should not schedule xylazine by making it a controlled substance. Scheduling drugs can make it more difficult for researchers to study these drugs and develop effective treatments for the people who use them.

--More training for medical and emergency staff on how to appropriately treat xylazine-related wounds and how to care for patients who may be experiencing xylazine withdrawal.

For more than 50 years our government has been criminalizing people for drugs. As a result, overdose deaths are skyrocketing and illicit drugs are stronger, cheaper, more available. To saves lives, the Biden Administration must prioritize a health approach to drugs including xylazine.

With your support, we’re doing everything we can to ensure they do the right thing.

Sincerely,

Maritza Perez Medina
Director, Federal Affairs
Drug Policy Alliance


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