Shaheen Joins Colleagues to Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Crack Down on Nitazene Traffickers

(Washington, DC) – U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) joined Senators Dave McCormick (R-PA) and Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) in introducing the Nitazene Control Act. The bipartisan legislation works to permanently schedule the entire class of nitazenes, a family of synthetic opioids up to 40 times more potent than fentanyl, under Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, closing loopholes that traffickers exploit by making slight chemical changes to evade enforcement.

“In New Hampshire, we’ve already lost far too many lives due to synthetic opioids, so it’s very concerning to know that nitazenes, which are even deadlier than fentanyl, are in our communities,” said Senator Shaheen. “We need to do everything possible to get nitazenes off our streets. I’m glad to join my colleagues on this bipartisan legislation that will give our law enforcement the tools they need to stop these synthetic opioids from flowing into our communities and save lives.”

Nitazenes have never been approved for medical use and their illicit presence in the U.S. has increased over the last few years. They have been found in counterfeit pills and mixed into other illicit drugs at an alarming rate, contributing to a sharp rise in overdose deaths nationwide. Routine drug tests and toxicology screenings typically do not look for nitazenes, making it all the more difficult to detect. Traffickers exploit these gaps in our nitazene enforcement, poisoning Americans and undermining our national security.

Senator Shaheen has led efforts to address the substance use disorder epidemic in the Granite State. Shaheen annually leads a bipartisan resolution with Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) to recognize National Fentanyl Prevention and Awareness Day. Earlier this year, Shaheen reintroduced the bipartisan Cooper Davis and Devin Norring Act to require social media companies to work with federal agencies to combat the sale and distribution of illicit drugs on their platforms. In April, Shaheen led the New Hampshire Congressional delegation in calling on U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to restore more than $80 million in federal funding that New Hampshire relies on to help communities address the substance use disorder and mental health crises. That same month, Shaheen held a roundtable at the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) in Concord to highlight the consequences of these cuts. Shaheen also introduced the bipartisan Keeping Drugs Out of Schools Act with Senator Grassley earlier this year that would establish a new grant program that allows current or former Drug-Free Communities (DFC) coalitions to partner with schools to provide resources educating students about the dangers of synthetic opioids.

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