April 17, 2023
On Wednesday, April 12, 2023, Dr. Rahul Gupta, Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), officially designated fentanyl adulterated or associated with xylazine as an emerging threat to the United States. As stated in a White House press release, "Xylazine is a non-opioid tranquilizer approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for veterinary use, but not human use."
A U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) report on the growing threat of xylazine and its mixture with illicit drugs found that between 2020 and 2021, indications of xylazine rose in all four U.S. census regions, with the greatest increases occurring in the south and west regions (193% and 112%, respectively). The report found that for the same time period, xylazine-positive overdose deaths increased by 1,127% in the south census region, 750% in the west, 516% in the midwest, and 103% in the northeast.
Dr. Gupta was quoted in the White House press release saying, "As a physician, I am deeply troubled about the devastating impact of the fentanyl-xylazine combination, and as President Biden's drug policy advisor, I am immensely concerned about what this threat means for the Nation . . . That's why the Biden-Harris Administration is using this designation authority for the first time since it passed Congress in 2018. By declaring xylazine combined with fentanyl as an emerging threat, we are being proactive in our approach to save lives and creating new tools for public health and public safety officials and communities across the Nation. To parents, loved ones, community leaders, and those affected by xylazine use: I want you to know that help is on the way."
As reported in the White House press release, the Biden-Harris Administration will take steps to publish a whole-of-government response that includes evidence-based prevention, treatment, and supply reduction. ONDCP is convening an interagency working group to inform the development of the national response plan, which is expected to include xylazine testing, treatment and supportive care protocols, comprehensive data systems, strategies to reduce the illicit supply of xylazine, and rapid research.
Click here to access the relevant White House press release, and click here to access the DEA report on xylazine and its mixture with illicit drugs.
