NEW YORK — Senate Majority Chief Chuck Schumer is pleading for monetary assist to battle fentanyl, the deadliest drug in our space.
CBS2’s Thalia Perez has extra on how drug sellers have made the drug extra interesting to youngsters.
They’re brightly coloured capsules that resemble sweet known as “rainbow fentanyl.”
“Merely put, it’s not sweet,” Schumer stated. “They do not inform the youngsters it is sweet, however they are saying, ‘Oh, this gives you an awesome excessive,’ and it appears harmless, so the youngsters are much more prone to take it.”
However the extremely addictive capsules are lethal and Schumer says he is calling for $290 million in federal funding to struggle this newest fentanyl trafficking battle. For one lady, the struggle is private.
“I even have a nephew that died of an overdose from fentanyl. It is a disgrace that we have let this go on for so long as we now have,” the girl stated.
Schumer says the colourful capsules have been round for about six months. He stated the federal cash can be used to fund 61 particular groups nationwide that go after drug sellers and educate children concerning the hazard of the brand new rainbow fentanyl.
“So, whenever you get youngsters hooked on a drug like fentanyl, like different opioids, at an early age, they basically develop into clients for all times for these drug traffickers, and that is unacceptable,” stated Dr. Mikhail Varshavski of Household Drugs.
Based on the Centers for Disease Control, 100,306 Individuals died of drug overdoses in 2021, a rise of 28.5 p.c from the identical interval in 2020.
Medical doctors say fentanyl is 50 occasions stronger than heroin.
The federal finances will probably be voted on this week.