Grand jury report urges lawmakers to ban all forms of fentanyl analogs

A grand jury convened by the Office of Special Narcotics released a report Tuesday urging lawmakers in Albany to take action against fentanyl analogs.

News 12 Staff

Jul 23, 2019, 9:12 PM

Updated 1,750 days ago

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A grand jury convened by the Office of Special Narcotics released a report Tuesday urging lawmakers in Albany to take action against fentanyl analogs.
Fentanyl analogs are a slight variation of fentanyl, which is illegal under state law. Authorities say fentanyl analogs are intentionally reconfigured to circumvent that law.
Authorities say that fentanyl analogs have led to nearly 900 overdose deaths across New York City since 2017. They say the inability to prosecute fentanyl analog cases has led to a spike in overdose deaths, with the Bronx having the highest rate of overdose deaths in the city.
The grand jury's report urged lawmakers to ban all forms of fentanyl analogs, and also recommended more funding for lab analyses.
Authorities say fentanyl analogs are often chemically produced to be even more concentrated then fentanyl in its base form. According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, fentanyl is an opioid that can be up to 100 times stronger than morphine.
 


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