Permanent Fentanyl Ban Garners Bipartisan Support in Congress

A bipartisan group in the House is pushing to permanently ban a wide set of synthetic opioids, fulfilling a Biden administration request to crack down on fentanyl traffickers.

Reps. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.), Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.), and Ted Budd (R-N.C.) will introduce legislation Monday to deem fentanyl-related substances—copies of the powerful opioid often found in other illicit drugs—among the most controlled drugs, Schedule 1. The measure would allow researchers to put some versions of fentanyl into less-controlled classes.

“This is one piece of a much bigger puzzle we have to solve in this country,” Pappas said, “in making sure that we ...