QUINCY — Following this past weekend's tragic and alarming deaths of nine people from drug overdoses linked to fentanyl in rural Gadsden County, top state officials, including first lady Casey DeSantis, visited here to call attention to the crisis caused by illegal synthetic opioid.
They blasted the Biden administration for not doing more to keep the dangerous drugout of the United States. She and other state leaders also reaffirmed the support of the DeSantis administration in fighting to reduce drug overdose deaths and drug addiction.
The visit by top state leaders to Quincy, 30minutes northwest of Tallahassee, comes just days after local law enforcement authorities reported that fentanyl-laced drugs had claimed the lives of nine people over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, including one 34-year-old victim and another who was 60 years of age.
'Gadsden was not prepared for this'
The deaths in Gadsden were especially jarring considering that the county recorded only 20 overdose deaths in all of 2021 and represent only the latest example of the dangers of fentanyl, which is ravaging cities large and small in Florida, and across the nation. Drug overdoses killat least one Floridian every 90 minutes.
“Gadsden was not prepared for this,” said Gadsden County Sheriff Morris Young. “It hit us like a ton of bricks.”
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Law enforcement officials say most people affected don't know fentanyl isin the illegal drugs they're buying — in amounts that otherwise wouldn't necessarily be deadly.
The problem has become so acute that the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration issued a warning three months ago about what it called “mass-overdose events.” It cited dozens of deaths in more than a half-dozen clusters in recent months in locations ranging from the small town of Cortez, Colorado, with fewer than 9,000 residents, to major cities such as Washington, D.C.
The tragedy over the Fourth of July holiday happened in four rural towns not far from the state capital — Havana, Gretna, Quincy and Chattahoochee.
In tracking the drugs' journey to the Florida Panhandle, First Lady Casey DeSantisand Younglargely blamed the influx onmanufacturers in China anda porous U.S.-Mexico border.
Young said drugs areoften traffickedacross the border and moved to nearby Atlanta, where it is then distributed to regions that include North Florida.
“We have a pyramid, we know a lot of the players who are responsible for spreading this poison and we’re going after them.”
Opioid sale penalties:Gov. DeSantis signs bill that stiffens penalties for illegal sale of opioids in Florida
What to know about fentanyl
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is up to 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It’s typically prescribed by doctors with patients in severe pain, especially after surgery and for those with advanced-stage cancer.
The CDC says it’sadded to other drugs because of its extreme potency, making the drug more addictive and more dangerous. Powdered fentanyl is usually mixed with drugs like heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine and made into pills to resemble other prescription opioids.
Two years ago, fentanyl emerged as a key driver of the nation’s opioid crisis. The drug can be lethal in even trace amounts, according to officials.
Casey DeSantis said she is working to unify the efforts of government and nonprofits to inform the publicof fentanyl’s dangers. The solution, she contends, requires more resources thatbolster mental health treatment and substance abuse programs.
“You can have the greatest program in the world but if nobody knows it exists, what good is it?” DeSantis said.
The federal Drug Enforcement Agency reports that drug sellers often mix fentanyl with other drugs — such as heroin or cocaine — because of its low cost and potency. The combination, often unknown to buyers, can poselethal consequences.
In 2020, roughly 6,089 people in Florida were killed by opioids, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Of those deaths, 5,302 were caused by fentanyl.
Nationwide, the CDC reported drug overdose deaths topped 107,000, a record number for a one-year period. The majority — more than 71,000 deaths — were fentanyl-related.
From USA TODAY:Why is fentanyl so dangerous? The illicit drug has ruined lives during COVID pandemic
A crackdown on fentanyl distributors, but critics saymore can be done
The DeSantis administration maintains that fentanyl is among theirtop priorities. In May, the governorsigned legislation that stiffens penalties against those found selling or distributing opioids, including fentanyl. The bill increases the mandatory minimum sentence for trafficking fentanyl from three years to seven years for 4 to 14 grams, and 15 to 20 years for 14-20 grams.
Florida Department of Law Enforcement Interim Commissioner Mark Glasspraised the legislation. He said some dealers are preying on the vulnerable by setting up shop outside of substance abuse clinics.
“Because of these enhanced penalties, we're going to put these people in jail for a long time,” Glasssaid.
More recently, DeSantis launched a statewide task force to address immigration-related crimes, including drug trafficking. Within three days, the task force in Northwest Florida recovered four grams of fentanyl. State officials celebrated the seizure, saying the amount is potent enough to kill roughly 2,000 Floridians.
Some Democratic lawmakers want more steps taken to reduce overdoses statewide.
In the 2022 Legislative Session, Democratic lawmakers urged the Legislature to decriminalize fentanyl test strips. The strips, which Florida considers as drug paraphernalia, are used to detect traces of fentanyl in various drugs.
Lawmakers voted against the change one day after several West Point candidates overdosed on fentanyl-laced cocaine while vacationing in South Florida.
Back story:
- Killing them softly: Advocates say legislative inaction will result in more drug OD deaths
- Column:Fentanyl detection strips save lives
Asked by the USA TODAY NETWORK-Floridaif test strips may help protect the public, Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapoon Thursday in Quincy with Casey DeSantis said he has yet to see data proving the strips are beneficial.
“I struggle to think that someone whose every compulsion at the moment is for another fix from a drug would sort of patiently use and interpret a fentanyl strip to evaluate some substance that they’re considering using,” Ladapo said.
Last month, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody issued a warning statewide on the dangers of fentanyl and how those peddling the illicit drug were using social media to sell it to young children.
“Minors may be increasingly susceptible to digital dealers during the summer, when they may spend more time online,” said Moody in releasing “Fast Facts on Fentanyl” to help parents talk to their kids about drug use.
The battle at the border
Federal law enforcement authorities are struggling to combat the surge of fentanyl. U.S. Customs and Border Protection in 2021 logged a more than 1,000% increase in fentanyl seized at the U.S.-Mexico Border. The number, while staggering, is only a fraction of the total amount trafficked yearly into the United States.
Florida’s Republican senators Marco Rubio and Rick Scotthave also blamed the nation’s fentanyl epidemic on the Biden administration for failing to secure the U.S.-Mexico border, a key gateway used by drug traffickers to move fentanyl and other illicit drugs.
The Biden administrationsent to Congress in April its strategy plan to respond to the country’s “opioid epidemic.”
White House drug czar Dr. Rahul Gupta said the strategy includes targeting the financial activities of drug traffickers, reducing the supply of illicit drugs smuggled across U.S. borders, improving data and research that guide drug policy and making sure that people at most in danger of overdose can obtain treatment.
He also said the administration wants to address “harm reduction” by making naloxone more available in referring to the medication that can revive users who have overdosed.
“All too often, these drugs wind up in communities where naloxone isn’t readily available,” he said.
After the nine deaths, deputies with the Gadsden County Sheriff's Office are going to be trained and supplied with Narcan, the brand prescription name of naloxone, according to spokesperson Lt. Anglie Holmes.
State officials on Thursday brought along more than 300 kits of Narcan, the prescription brand name of the prescription naloxone.
The CDC has published an extensive collection of data and facts about fentanyl.
Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody “Fast Facts on Fentanyl” last month released an online publication to help parents talk to their kids about drug use.
https://doseofrealityfl.com/pdfs/general-information-fast-facts-fentanyl.pdf
Jason Delgado is a reporter for the USA Today Network-Florida. He's based in Tallahassee. Reach him at JDelgado@gannett.com
