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Texans in Congress are advocating for bipartisan legislation that aims to enhance availability of fentanyl testing strips, following an unsuccessful attempt in the Texas Legislature earlier this year.
U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, led several senators from both parties in introducing the Fentanyl Safe Testing and Overdose Prevention Act on Thursday to clarify, in federal law, that fentanyl testing strips are not considered to be drug paraphernalia.
U.S. Reps. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas, and Lance Gooden, R-Terrell, introduced companion legislation in May, dubbed the Secure Testing Resources Instead of Prosecuting Act, or STRIP Act.
The legislation aims to modify the Controlled Substances Act, which currently prohibits the utilization, trade, import, and export of drug paraphernalia.
In a statement, Cornyn expressed concern over the devastating impact of Fentanyl on Texas communities. He highlighted the alarming increase in poisonings among children and teenagers, attributing it to the rise in counterfeit prescription pills that contain this lethal substance. Emphasizing the need to prevent fentanyl-related deaths, Cornyn urged his colleagues to promptly pass the legislation, which would equip individuals with the necessary resources to identify this dangerous drug.
Many states have taken similar actions to exclude testing strips from their lists of drug paraphernalia.
The Texas House voted overwhelmingly in April to decriminalize fentanyl testing strips, but the Senate declined to take action on House Bill 362 in the regular session. Gov. Greg Abbott supported decriminalizing the test strips, reversing his earlier opposition.
When Crockett served as a member of the Texas House and sat on the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee, she brought forth comparable legislation.
In a statement made in May, Crockett compared criminalizing fentanyl test strips to prohibiting water hoses during a house fire. This approach, according to Crockett, not only fails to address the problem at hand but also puts people’s lives at risk.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, synthetic opioids like fentanyl accounted for the majority of drug overdoses in the U.S. last year. Fentanyl, which is more than 50 times stronger than heroin, is often combined with other substances and is difficult to detect without specialized equipment due to its lack of odor and taste.
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