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News Articles: fentanyl

President Trump speaks before signing the "Halt All Lethal Trafficking of Fentanyl Act," which strengthens prison sentences for fentanyl traffickers, in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on July 16.

Tagged as: 

  • National

As drug deaths hit a 5-year low, Trump continues to cite fentanyl as major threat

Drug deaths in the U.S. are at their lowest level since March 2025, according to federal data. Trump continues to cite fentanyl as justification for policies ranging from tariffs to immigration.

August 30, 2025
|
By:
  • Brian Mann
A McGruff the Crime Dog public service ad warning young people of fake prescription drugs that may contain fentanyl.

Tagged as: 

  • Politics

Trump administration cuts McGruff the Crime Dog's fentanyl campaign

The National Crime Prevention Council is questioning federal cuts to McGruff the Crime Dog's campaign to sniff out fake pills. The group says McGruff's work that started in 1980 isn't over.

August 08, 2025
|
By:
  • Kristin Wright
Much of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's $9 billion budget has been in limbo.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

CDC to disburse delayed funds for fighting fentanyl and more, staffers say

Much of the public health agency's $9 billion budget had been in limbo, but funds are finally flowing, according to CDC staffers, including for a key overdose prevention program.

August 06, 2025
|
By:
  • Selena Simmons-Duffin and
  • Brian Mann
Greg Swan, whose son Drew died as a result of a fentanyl-related substance, looks on as President Trump speaks in the East Room of the White House. The president signed the HALT Fentanyl Act, which aims to permanently classify all fentanyl-related substances as schedule I controlled substances and aid law enforcement in prosecuting trafficking and manufacturing offenses.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

White House says U.S. fentanyl overdose programs will be funded 'in increments'

CDC staffers worry $140 million in grants could fail to reach state and local overdose programs. The White House officials say the dollars will arrive but won't say when.

July 17, 2025
|
By:
  • Brian Mann
An anti-fentanyl sign in Leavenworth, Kansas. Kansas is one of 49 states that face funding delays for a key federal grant program used in the fight against fentanyl overdoses.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Exclusive: Trump team withholds $140 million budgeted for fentanyl fight

Threats to $140 million in funds for public health departments battling fentanyl overdoses comes as some experts see the addiction safety net unraveling.

July 16, 2025
|
By:
  • Brian Mann
Justin Carlyle, age 23, photographed on the street in Kensington, a neighborhood of Philadelphia, has lived with addiction to fentanyl and other drugs for a decade. After a decade when overdoses devastated young Americans, drug deaths among people in the U.S. under age 35 are plummeting. The shift is saving thousands of young lives every year.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Drug deaths plummet among young Americans as fentanyl carnage eases

U.S. drug deaths dropped by roughly 40% last year among people under the age of 35. It's a welcome pivot for families and communities devastated by fentanyl.

June 10, 2025
|
By:
  • Brian Mann
Lawmakers in Washington, D.C., are weighing spending cuts to addiction healthcare and research programs responding to the nation's deadly overdose crisis. Activists and health workers submitted a letter to Congress on Monday protesting the proposed budget reductions.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Experts warn Congress cuts to addiction funding will mean more overdose deaths

A broad coalition of addiction experts wants Congress to maintain healthcare funding for the nation's response to fentanyl and other street drugs.

May 13, 2025
|
By:
  • Brian Mann
A woman reached for a dose of methadone at the Behavioral Health Network opioid treatment clinic.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Critics say GOP Medicaid cuts could slash fentanyl addiction treatment

Republicans hope to save a lot of tax dollars by cutting Medicaid. Drug policy experts say as many as a million Americans in treatment for addiction could lose coverage.

April 14, 2025
|
By:
  • Brian Mann
President Donald Trump's new trade levies include a broadside against e-commerce.  His executive order extinguishes a tariff exemption for packages from China and Hong Kong worth less than $800.

Tagged as: 

  • Business

Trump closes loophole used by American shoppers to buy Chinese goods tariff-free

The so-called de minimis exemption allowed Chinese and Hong Kong retailers to ship millions of packages worth $800 or less directly to U.S. consumers. That loophole will close May 2.

April 06, 2025
|
By:
  • Brian Mann

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Misinformation about fentanyl exposure threatens to undermine overdose response

Fentanyl overdoses occur from ingesting the synthetic opioid. But popular culture has misrepresented the risks to first responders.

April 03, 2025
|
By:
  • Henry Larweh
Brittney Galvanauskas looks at a piece of art on the wall at Living Proof Recovery in Rome, Georgia.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Proponents say prioritizing recovery services over punishments may reduce fentanyl overdoses

Georgia Senate Bill 79 or the Fentanyl Reduction and Eradication Act, takes Austin's Law to the next step, establishing mandatory minimum sentences for drug crime.

April 02, 2025
|
By:
  • Ellen Eldridge
WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 25:   Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard appeared during a Senate Committee on Intelligence Hearing on March 25, 2025 in Washington, DC.  Despite a decline in fentanyl overdose deaths, her team ranked smuggling and drug cartels as top threats to U.S. security.

Tagged as: 

  • Politics

In new assessment, Trump team ranks fentanyl as a top threat to U.S.

Drug deaths are declining but the Trump administration's intelligence team has issued a new report describing street fentanyl as a top threat to the U.S.

March 25, 2025
|
By:
  • Brian Mann
The state of Virginia has seen drug overdose deaths plunge by more than 40% in a single year.  Many other states are seeing improvements above 30%. Why is this happening?  Researchers say it may be a combination of factors, some hopeful and some painful.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Reporter's notebook: 8 theories why fentanyl deaths are plummeting

Some 30,000 fewer people are dying every year in the U.S. from fentanyl and other street drugs. This shift has stunned addiction experts, reversing decades of rising death.

March 24, 2025
|
By:
  • Brian Mann
President Trump speaks at the Justice Department on Friday.

Tagged as: 

  • Politics

Trump reclaims a Justice Department reshaped in his wake

The rare speech at the Justice Department comes as the Trump administration has spent the last several weeks trying to reconfigure the agency, including demoting attorneys who worked on cases related to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, and firing officials who investigated the president himself.

March 14, 2025
|
By:
  • Deepa Shivaram
Elena (left) and Vadim live on the street in Kensington, a neighborhood of Philadelphia that has long struggled with fentanyl and other drug use.  Both told NPR they have survived their drug use, in part, due to naloxone, or Narcan, a medication that reverses opioid overdoses. NPR agreed not to use their last name because street drug use is illegal.

Tagged as: 

  • National

Deadliest phase of fentanyl crisis eases, as all states see recovery

In some parts of the U.S., drug deaths have plunged to levels not seen since the fentanyl crisis exploded. Addiction experts say communities still face big challenges.

March 10, 2025
|
By:
  • Brian Mann
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