The Kansas Legislature missed an opportunity to adopt a bill that would save lives. We’re talking about the bill to make it legal to have and distribute test strips that can detect the presence of fentanyl in recreational drugs. The test strips could prevent people from overdosing on illegal recreational drugs that have been spiked with fentanyl, a synthetic opioid. Not realizing it is present can lead to a fatal overdose.
In Kansas, an individual can be charged with possession of drug paraphernalia for possessing the test strips.
According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, there is significant risk that illegal drugs have been intentionally contaminated with fentanyl. Because of its potency and low cost, drug dealers have been mixing fentanyl with other drugs including heroin, methamphetamine and cocaine, increasing the likelihood of a fatal interaction.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that synthetic opioids (like fentanyl) are the primary driver of overdose deaths in the United States. Comparing 12-month periods ending January 31, 2020, and January 31, 2021, overdose deaths involving opioids rose 38.1%, while overdose deaths involving synthetic opioids (primarily illicitly manufactured fentanyl) rose 55.6% and appear to be the primary driver of the increase in total drug overdose deaths.
Former U.S. attorney for Kansas Stephen R. McAllister urged lawmakers to pass the bill because it would save lives. “We are not talking about heroin addicts in back alleys, but teenagers who obtain a pill online thinking it is Percocet or OxyContin only to take it and die because it is laced with fentanyl,” he warned.
In 2019, a 40-year-old Barton County woman went into cardiac arrest after ingesting fake Oxycodone being distributed in Kansas. A pill seized by police officers revealed the presence of fentanyl.
Last September, during National Recovery Month, members of a local Lived Experiences group rallied around the Barton County Courthouse for an event called Recovery Out Loud - Every Voice Matters.
Rise Up Coordinator Amy Ferguson said the gathering was a chance for people in the community to hear “the other side of the story,” the stories of people as they work on their recovery from substance use, trauma, mental illness or other life issues, and to celebrate with them. Through lived experiences, members of this group understand the importance of personal accountability. But before anyone becomes part of the “recovery community,” that person first has to live through the consequences of some bad choices. They have to survive before they can change.
From this effort, we learned that free naloxone (Narcan) nasal spray and training are available to community organizations and any Kansas resident. (Learn more online at dccca.org/naloxone-program/.)
Narcan is legal and saves lives. That’s why the test trips should also be legal.
As Rep. Jason Probst, D-Hutchinson, told the Legislature, “We have a policy that we know will save lives; there’s a mountain of evidence to show it. And we have people who run their campaigns on the idea that they’re pro-life. And they just voted to kill people, and I think that they need to be held to account for that.”
Let’s value the lives of people after they are born.
