The Next Lethal Illegal Drug Is Heading For Washington State

There seems to be no end to the stream of drugs making their way into our neighborhoods.  There isn't just one reason for it, but there is certainly a domino effect that is created by decisions, or non-decisions.

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Pot was a big deal when I was a kid and in to my early teens.  I knew some kids in high school that smoked hash, a few that dabbled in speed, and a couple that bragged about having access to cocaine.  Nothing really scared the kids I knew that were in the drug scene like crack.

Crack 'houses' started popping up with some people going in, and never coming out...alive anyway.  After the crack epidemic began to subside, crystal meth was there to fill the void and taking countless lives with it.

Since 2018 Fentanyl, and it's analogs, have been the increasing overdose body counts with staggering speed and efficiency.  Now there is word of another deadly drug rising in popularity and it is being found in tandem with fentanyl.

Bromazolam is a drug first synthesized in 1976, but was never marketed in the Unites States.  The designer drug is commonly referred to as 'fake Xanax', is is much more potent making it much easier to cause an overdose.

The Horsham, PA based Center for Forensic Science and Research (cfsre) is raising alarm bells about the increase in detection of the drug.  It made it's way to the U.S. in 2019 and in the first quarter of 2021 was found in about one percent of toxicology samples.  A little more than a year later it was found in thirteen percent.

Roughly three quarters of the Bromazolam samples were found to also contain fentanyl.  That's as bad a combo as you can put together.  Bromazolam on it's own can have significant side effects as an overdose can put you into a deep unconsciousness.  When combined with alcohol or fentanyl you're talking an increasing risk of death.

Because it is an illegal drug 'fake Xanax' pills can be cut with anything.  What makes Bromazolam even more challenging is that Narcan has no effect on someone overdosing on the drug.  The National Institute of Justice is warning of the Nationwide spread.  It just a matter of time before we have to deal with it here.