WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) — Ohio Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown is pushing a bipartisan bill called the ‘Combating Illicit Xylazine Act’. Xylazine, also known as “tranq,” is an easily accessible veterinary tranquilizer that is being used as a low-cost cutting agent for fentanyl.
“We want to make sure that xylazine is not so readily available to drug dealers,” Sen. Sherrod Brown, (D-Ohio.) said.
The synthetic drug is normally used by veterinarians to treat large animals, Brown says it is being mixed with fentanyl and humans are using it.
He’s concerned that xylazine is getting into the wrong hands.
“That’s a serious problem for people that potentially overdose,” Brown said.
The Combating Illicit Xylazine Act would:
-List xylazine as Schedule III illicit substance under the Controlled Substances Act
-Ensure veterinarians, farmers, and ranchers can still use the drug for its intended purpose by creating a clear definition of “ultimate user” – someone lawfully permitted to possess a controlled substance for legitimate use
-Enable the DEA to track its manufacturing to ensure it is not diverted to the illicit market
-Require a report on prevalence, risks, and recommendations regarding xylazine.
Brown says the bill has been endorsed by 39 state attorneys general, major law enforcement organizations, and veterinary groups.
According to the CDC last year more than two-thirds of the reported drug overdose deaths in the U.S. involved synthetic opioids.
“The stuff is not easy to manufacture,” Sen. J.D. Vance, (R-Ohio.) said.
Senator J.D. Vance says many of these synthetic drugs like fentanyl are coming from China.
He is calling on the Biden administration to do more to stop it.
“Unfortunately, the Biden administration, I think, has just been really weak on this issue,” Vance said.
The Biden administration says it is putting pressure on China to crack down on the manufacturing of these drugs.
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