From April 2021 to April 2022, synthetic opioids like fentanyl killed nearly 73,000 Americans according to the CDC; that’s more than 1,400 deaths per week. Right now, fentanyl is the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18-45. In 2021, the deadly drug killed more Americans than gun and auto-related deaths combined.
This is not a flash in the pan, and it is not a talking point. This is a real-life crisis unfolding in front of our very eyes, and it has a severe human cost. Too many Americans know someone who has succumbed to fentanyl, which is deadly enough to kill an adult with a dose as small as two milligrams. If you need a point of reference, a dime weighs roughly 2,700 milligrams.
How did we get here? The answer is as straightforward as it is disappointing. President Joe Biden threw our southern border wide open to drug cartels, who have flooded our streets with fentanyl. The DEA is now warning parents about “rainbow fentanyl,” which looks like candy and is designed by the cartels to target children and teens. As Halloween approaches, mothers like me are terrified – thanks to reckless open-border policies that create perfect conditions for ruthless drug cartels, our children are now on the front line of a drug crisis.
Keeping our kids safe should not be a partisan issue. And neither should securing our border to stop drugs from flowing into our country.