Friend, with your support, we advocate for real solutions to the tragic overdose crisis. Fentanyl is a driver of the overdose crisis, and it's time our elected leaders advocate for evidence-based solutions. On this National Fentanyl Awareness Day, it’s vital for us to raise our voices and provide the facts about fentanyl, how criminalization is driving the emergence of fentanyl and rising overdose deaths, and the health approaches that are needed to save lives.
Overdose deaths are preventable. No one needs to die. Yet they have reached record highs with nearly 108,000 lives lost to overdose in 2022 alone. These are not just numbers. They are our loved ones: our families, our friends, our neighbors.
We can’t allow this to be the new normal. We are all concerned about fentanyl and the overdose crisis. But myths and misinformation have led to harmful responses that criminalize and punish people, rather than prioritizing the health policies that are proven to help.
The very thing electeds are proposing in response to the overdose crisis and rise in fentanyl – criminalization – is driving the overdose crisis. Drug prohibition has created an unsafe, unregulated drug supply overtaken by fentanyl, which is driving deaths. Law enforcement crackdowns on prescription opioids and heroin led to fentanyl overtaking the illicit drug supply. Despite fentanyl and fentanyl-related substances being federally illegal since 2018, overdoses have risen every year since. And crackdowns on fentanyl are leading to even more unknown and potentially potent substances in the drug supply, such as xylazine.
Many people are dying accidentally simply because they don’t know what they are taking. And more punishment just increases harm. It makes people afraid to seek help and pushes them into risky situations like using alone. And jail is often a revolving door. People are arrested and released without any meaningful connection to treatment, services, or support.
Shamefully, many elected officials continue to fail our communities by calling for ineffective punitive policies, including harsh penalties for fentanyl. It’s past time for elected officials to follow the facts and prioritize a health-based approach instead.
That’s why we are working to pass the TEST Act in Congress. It’s the first step toward putting science and facts first when it comes to the federal response to fentanyl. It would require testing and scheduling of fentanyl-related substances based on potential for harm and allow research of potentially lifesaving medications to curb the overdose crisis. Tell your Senators to support this bill to find new solutions that will save lives.
Overdose and fentanyl are complex issues, but we can’t let fear and misinformation stand in the way of saving lives. Please help us raise awareness about why we need a health approach to fentanyl by spreading the facts and sharing our resources.
