In North Carolina, Fentanyl Is Involved In 77% Of Fatal ODs

Fatal overdoses in all parts of North Carolina have increased since the beginning of the pandemic. The trend, over time, is bleak. Recent statistics show 2,350 drug overdoses between January and August 2021. Of those overdoses, 77% listed fentanyl as a contributing factor to death.

Fentanyl is the leading factor in most drug overdose deaths in America. Much of the time, inexperienced drug users are exposed to the drug when added to the substance they buy. Unfortunately, it happens more often than people realize. Even cocaine users have accidentally overdosed due to accidentally ingesting fentanyl with their cocaine in the past few years.

According to the CDC, Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid “up to 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine.” When inexperienced drug users accidentally ingest it, it can cause respiratory failure as a person overdoses. Fentanyl is manufactured legally as a medication for severe pain or a sedative for surgery. However, it’s also now manufactured on the black market, sold on the dark web, and imported from pharmaceutical companies in countries such as China.

Counterfeit Pills A Growing Problem

Counterfeit pills are a problem that seems to be getting bigger every year. Fentanyl has been found in North Carolina in counterfeit Percocet, ecstasy, Xanax, and Adderall. These drugs are frequently abused by younger people who are experimenting with drugs for the first time. Illicit drug use among almost all age groups went up during the pandemic.

Fentanyl is causing overdoses when used as an additive in other drugs people use recreationally. Unfortunately, most of them never knew that their pills contained fentanyl.

While there has always been drug trafficking in North Carolina, police aim to focus on the people who may never even enter the state to conduct their business. As a result, law enforcement has seen increased activity on the dark web, with traffickers mailing or delivering drugs directly to people who buy them for personal use.

The Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force has been finding and prosecuting online drug dealers who sell fentanyl-laced counterfeit pills on the dark web. While using encryption for their interactions helps the drug dealers stay anonymous, police often do some old-fashioned police work to find the identity of the drug dealers. However, they say their priority is prosecuting them and keeping counterfeit pills and other illicit drugs off the street.

Help for Opioid Addiction

If you or somebody you love is struggling with addiction, there’s help available. Medication-Assisted Treatment is the gold standard of treatment for fentanyl addiction, alongside appropriate therapy. We can help you get started via telehealth! Learn more by giving us a call at 910-295-7246.