Bill seeks permanent fentanyl analogues scheduling

U.S. Reps. Morgan Griffith (R-VA), Bob Latta (R-OH), and Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) recently introduced the Halt All Lethal Trafficking of (HALT) Fentanyl Act, which seeks to permanently schedule fentanyl analogues while granting researchers the ability to conduct fentanyl substance studies.

The legislation addresses fentanyl and fentanyl analogues temporarily falling under Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) due to a temporary scheduling order that runs through Dec. 31, 2024.

“The opioid crisis continues to devastate families in Virginia and across the country, made worse by fentanyl and its analogues,” Griffith said. “This bill would recognize the danger of fentanyl analogues by permanently scheduling them while also allowing researchers to study their effects. As drug overdose deaths reach historic levels in our country, our bill offers a way to make progress amid the tragedy of addiction.”

The lawmakers cited an FY 2023 report that found U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized more than 9,000 pounds of fentanyl coming across the southern border, representing enough of the drug to kill over 2.1 billion people.

“Our nation continues to battle a devastating overdose crisis – the vast majority attributed to illicit fentanyl – which has claimed thousands upon thousands of American lives each year,” Latta said. “This epidemic has wreaked havoc on our communities and destroyed far too many families. It’s time to take swift and decisive action to rid our streets and communities of this dangerous drug.”

Rodgers, Energy and Commerce Committee chair, said passing the HALT Fentanyl Act to permanently schedule fentanyl-related substances and keep the substances out of communities is one of the committee’s top priorities.