Fentanyl Pill Seizures Increasing in the US
The number of fentanyl seizures, particularly pill seizures, increased in the US, especially in the West, between 2017 and 2023, according to results published in the International Journal of Drug Policy.
“Availability of illicit fentanyl is continuing to skyrocket in the US, and the influx of fentanyl-containing pills is particularly alarming,” said lead author Joseph J. Palamar, PhD, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York City. “Public health efforts are needed to help prevent these pills from falling into the hands of young people, and to help prevent overdose among people taking pills that unsuspectingly contain fentanyl.”
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Researchers investigated annual trends in fentanyl seizures using data from High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) from 2017 through 2023. The data included the number of seizures, powder seizures, pill seizures, the total weight of seizures, the number of pills seized, and the percentage of the number of pill seizures relative to the number of total seizures.
The percentage of seizures in pill form in the US increased from 10.3 % in 2017 to 49.0 % in 2023 (adjusted annual percentage change [AAPC]=25.2, 95 % CI: 17.6, 33.2), with 115.6 million individual pills seized in 2023. In 2023, the majority of seizures were in the West, with 77.8% being in pill form. Though the Midwest had lower prevalence of seizures than the West, there were notable increases in the Midwest in the number of pill seizures (AAPC=142.2, 95 % CI: 91.9, 205.8) and number of pills seized (AAPC=421.0, 95 % CI: 272.7, 628.4). Total weight of fentanyl seized increased the most in the West (AAPC=84.6, 95 % CI: 72.3, 97.8).
“When examining shifts in illicit fentanyl availability over time and by region, varied measures of drug supply such as counts, weights, and formulations of drug seizures can help locally tailored overdose prevention and harm reduction efforts,” authors concluded.
Authors noted that law enforcement efforts may differ across or within regions, which could skew study results. Enforcement efforts also were found to be increasing at a slower rate than fentanyl seizures, which could also limit results.
References
Palamar JJ, Fitzgerald N, Carr TH, et al. National and regional trends in fentanyl seizures in the United States, 2017–2023. Int J Drug Policy. Published online May 3, 2024. doi: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2024.104417.
Over 115 million pills containing illicit fentanyl seized by law enforcement in 2023. National Institutes of Health. Published May 13, 2024. Accessed December 17, 2024.
