Explosion of Overdoses Prompts Biden Action on Deadly Drug Combo

The Biden administration is rolling out a multi-agency plan to address a growing crisis of a deadly drug combination of fentanyl and the animal tranquilizer xylazine, with a focus on drug testing and data collection.

Known as “tranq dope,” the lethal combo of opioids and xylazine has been behind an increasing number of opioid deaths. Fatal opioid overdoses with xylazine at play jumped from almost 3% to nearly 11% from January 2019 to June 2022, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The effects of xylazine, which hasn’t been approved for human use, are “devastating” when mixed with fentanyl, said Neera Tanden, White House domestic policy adviser, in a press call.

In its response plan to the crisis, the Biden administration is calling on the Food and Drug Administration to develop and authorize rapid tests for xylazine and fentanyl for use in clinical settings. According to the strategy, the administration will also push for testing standardization as well as devise an algorithm to predict whether someone used xylazine based on information like community prevalence and flesh wounds, which are associated with the drug.

“As a physician, I’ve never seen wounds this bad, at this scale,” White House drug czar Rahul Gupta said in a press call. “If we thought fentanyl was dangerous, fentanyl combined with xylazine is even deadlier.”

The plan marks the first of four steps the administration is set to take after Gupta’s designation of fentanyl mixed with xylazine as an emerging drug threat. From here, Gupta’s Office of National Drug Control Policy will issue guidance for government agencies to implement the strategy. That’s to be followed by a report on the implementation.

Also part of the administration effort: expanding data collection, including developing a central repository for important information. The report also calls for deploying collection strategies like wastewater testing “as needed.”

The plan also says the government should look into scheduling xylazine under the Controlled Substances Act, though it notes it should still be available for veterinary use.

Vice President Kamala Harris next week will be convening state attorneys general to discuss how they’re addressing the fentanyl crisis, and conversations will include xylazine, Gupta said.