The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) announced that federal funding may now be used to purchase rapid fentanyl test strips to help curb the dramatic spike in drug overdose deaths largely driven by the use of strong synthetic opioids, including illicitly manufactured fentanyl, according to a news release from the CDC.
Fentanyl test strips can be used to determine if drugs have been mixed or cut with fentanyl, providing people who use drugs and communities with important information about fentanyl in the illicit drug supply so they can take steps to reduce their risk of overdose.
Approximately 88,000 drug overdose deaths occurred in the United States in the 12 months ending in August 2020, the highest number of overdose deaths recorded in a 12-month period, according to provisional data from CDC, and overdose deaths have continued to accelerate during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Grantees from the CDC’s multiyear Overdose Data to Action and the SAMHSA’s State Opioid Response (SOR) programs can now use funds to purchase fentanyl test strips.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid used for treating severe pain and is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine.
