News Releases

Montgomery County Police Recognizes National Fentanyl Awareness Day

For Immediate Release: Tuesday, May 9, 2023

Gaithersburg, MD- Tuesday, May 9, 2023, is National Fentanyl Awareness Day.

According to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), “Fentanyl is the greatest threat to Americans today. It kills more Americans between the ages of 18 to 45 than terrorism, than car accidents, than cancer, than COVID.”

During the first quarter of 2023, the Montgomery County Police Department investigated 114 overdose incidents. That is a 52% increase from last year. Of those 114 overdose incidents, 29% were fatal overdoses. Even more of a concern is the fact that 35 of the overdose incidents were individuals who were under the age of 21.

“Montgomery County is not immune to the nationwide overdose epidemic. Certainly, Narcan is a life saving innovation that has lowered the rate of fatal overdoses,” says Chief Marcus Jones. “Still, we know that 60% of all counterfeit fentanyl pills have an amount of drug that can cause a fatal overdose. We also know that police can’t arrest our way out of this epidemic. Our role is to target those dealers who are taking advantage of those battling addiction.”

A news release from the DEA regarding National Fentanyl Awareness Day can be found here: https://www.dea.gov/press-releases/2023/05/08/dea-recognizes-national-fentanyl-awareness-day

 

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Release ID: 23-258
Media Contact: L.N.J.Ivey 
Categories: uncategorized