92.5 pounds of illicit fentanyl seized in Alameda, Calif. April 23. PHOTO: /ASSOCIATED PRESS
Most of the additional fatal overdoses post-Covid involve methamphetamine and fentanyl made in Mexico, China and India. For each overdose death, more than 100 people struggle with debilitating addictions to these dangerous substances.
Coincident with policy changes advertised as civil-rights progress, the comparatively low drug-overdose rate for blacks began to accelerate. It reached the white rate by 2019 and then surged past it during the pandemic to reach 43 annually per 100,000 of the black population by last September.
Hardly a day goes by without hearing about fentanyl-laced heroin, fentanyl-lace (counterfeit) Xanax, or other recreational drugs adulterated with fentanyl. If they had the opportunity to meet the purveyors of these substances, most Americans would not find them trustworthy enough dog sit or walk their dog. Yet, a small percentage of Americans trust people not trained in pharmacology to manufacture of mix drug concoctions that can kill with a very narrow therapeutic index. It would seem to be a very scary time to be a recreational drug user.