III
117th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. RES. 624
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
May 9, 2022
Mrs. Feinstein (for herself, Mr. Grassley, Ms. Hassan, Mr. Risch, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Crapo, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. Tillis, Mr. Markey, Mrs. Capito, Ms. Cortez Masto, Mr. Cornyn, Mr. Whitehouse, Mrs. Blackburn, Mr. Manchin, Mr. Cotton, Ms. Baldwin, Ms. Ernst, Mr. Kelly, Ms. Klobuchar, and Mr. Scott of Florida) submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to
RESOLUTION
Supporting the mission and goals of National Fentanyl Awareness Day in 2022, including increasing individual and public awareness of the impact of fake or counterfeit fentanyl pills on families and young people.
Whereas drug traffickers are mass-producing fake or counterfeit pills and falsely marketing them as legitimate prescription pills to deceive the people of the United States;
Whereas many fake or counterfeit pills are made to look like prescription name-brand opioids or stimulants;
Whereas drug traffickers are using fake or counterfeit pills to exploit the opioid crisis and prescription drug misuse;
Whereas the Drug Enforcement Agency (referred to in this preamble as the DEA
) has observed a dramatic rise in the number of counterfeit pills containing not less than 2 mg of fentanyl, which is considered a deadly dose;
Whereas 4 out of every 10 pills with fentanyl tested by the DEA contain a potentially lethal dose;
Whereas counterfeit pills may also contain fentanyl-related substances and methamphetamine;
Whereas the number of counterfeit pills with fentanyl seized by law enforcement agencies has increased by nearly 502 percent since 2019;
Whereas more than 9,500,000 counterfeit pills were seized within the last year, which exceeds the total number of seizures for the previous 2 years combined;
Whereas fake or counterfeit pills have been identified in all 50 States and the District of Columbia;
Whereas illicit fentanyl has also been detected in street drugs such as heroin and cocaine;
Whereas, for the 12-month period ending in October 2021, more than 105,000 individuals in the United States died of drug-induced deaths, and 69,000 of those deaths involved illicit fentanyl;
Whereas, over the last 20 years, drug-induced deaths among individuals aged 15 to 35 has increased 6-fold, largely driven by the increase in illicit fentanyl drugs;
Whereas, for the 12-month period ending in April 2021, the leading cause of death for individuals in the United States aged 18 to 45 was illicit fentanyl;
Whereas fake counterfeit pills are easily accessible and often sold on social media and e-commerce platforms, making them accessible to teens and youth;
Whereas illicit fentanyl is involved in more deaths of youths than all other drug types combined;
Whereas, in 2020, drug overdose and poisoning deaths for individuals aged 14 to 18 grew by 94 percent, which was more than 3 times as fast as the national rate and faster than any other 5-year age group;
Whereas, in 2020, fentanyl involvement in drug overdose and poisoning deaths for individuals aged 14 to 18 grew by 169 percent, which was more than 3 times as fast as the national rate and faster than any other 5-year age group; and
Whereas, in 2020, there were 56,516 reported overdose deaths due to synthetic opioids; Now, therefore, be it
That the Senate—
supports the recognition and goals of National Fentanyl Awareness Day, which include increasing individual and public awareness of the impact of fake or counterfeit fentanyl pills on families and young people;
applauds the work of Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies that work to combat the proliferation of counterfeit pills;
encourages the use of existing authorities to proactively stop and prevent the spread of illicit counterfeit pills; and
designates May 10, 2022 as National Fentanyl Awareness Day
.