The U.S. government claims that fentanyl is manufactured by Mexican cartels using chemical products from Asia, specifically China. A decrease in the number of fatal overdoses has been recorded, which is partly attributed to awareness efforts about the dangers of drug use.
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has expressed its commitment to inform Americans about the dangers of fentanyl, highlighting that it is intentionally hidden in other drugs and counterfeit pills that mimic real medications. The DEA praised the advances in law enforcement and resource allocation to combat this problem.
In December 2023, the creation of a "task force" against fentanyl trafficking in the United States was announced, backed by the Department of the Treasury and led by the Criminal Investigation Division and the Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence (TFI).
The decrease in fatal overdose cases in the U.S. was 14.5% year-on-year, equivalent to about 14,000 lives saved, according to the DEA. The latest data from the CDC shows a 14.5% decrease in overdose deaths, reaching nearly 97,000, the lowest figure in four years.
DEA Administrator Anne Milgram highlighted the pressure exerted on Mexican cartels, mentioning the Sinaloa and Jalisco groups. This pressure encompasses everything from the supply chain of chemical products in China to distribution in Mexico, targeting both producers and drug traffickers.
Fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid, is responsible for the majority of overdose deaths in the United States. Milgram concluded that there are reasons to be optimistic about this issue.
