The Drug Enforcement Administration is advising the public of an alarming emerging trend of colorful fentanyl available across the United States. Dubbed “rainbow fentanyl” in the media, this trend appears to be a new method used by drug cartels to sell highly addictive and potentially deadly fentanyl made to look like candy to children and young people.
“Rainbow fentanyl—fentanyl pills and powder that come in a variety of bright colors, shapes, and sizes—is a deliberate effort by drug traffickers to drive addiction amongst kids and young adults,” said DEA Administrator Anne Milgram. “The men and women of the DEA are relentlessly working to stop the trafficking of rainbow fentanyl and defeat the Mexican drug cartels that are responsible for the vast majority of the fentanyl that is being trafficked in the United States.”
Brightly-colored fentanyl is being seized in multiple forms, including pills, powder, and blocks that resembles sidewalk chalk. Despite claims that certain colors may be more potent than others, there is no indication through DEA’s laboratory testing that this is the case. Every color, shape, and size of fentanyl should be considered extremely dangerous.
Fentanyl is now found in nearly every community in Oregon, becoming prevalent in 2019. According to the Oregon Health Authority website page on Opioid Overdose and Misuse, “The Oregon-Idaho High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) reported seizing more than 1.3 million counterfeit pills in 2021 in Oregon, an 85% increase since 2020 and a 1,199% increase since 2019. Fentanyl is now the second leading cause of unintentional overdose in Oregon, after methamphetamine.”
The first death in Oregon attributed to Fentanyl occurred in November 2016. Last year, accornding to the National Center for Health Statistics, Oregon overdose deaths increased 41%, compared to a 16% increase nationwide.
Recently, in Jefferson County, OR, during a traffic stop, a state trooper seized enough fentanyl to kill over 3 million people.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 50 times more potent than heroin and 100 times more potent than morphine. Just two milligrams of fentanyl, which is equal to 10-15 grains of table salt, is considered a lethal dose. Without laboratory testing, there is no way to know how much fentanyl is concentrated in a pill or powder.
Fentanyl remains the deadliest drug threat facing this country. According to the CDC, 107,622 Americans died of drug overdoses in 2021, with 66 percent of those deaths related to synthetic opioids like fentanyl. Drug poisonings are the leading killer of Americans between the ages of 18 and 45.
If you encounter fentanyl in any form, do not handle it and call 911 immediately.
