Cartels in the latter usually then smuggle it into the United States. China is also the main supplier to Canada and Mexico. The death rate from synthetic drug use reflects this trend.Ĭhina is the number one supplier of fentanyl to the United States. In the past two years, however, illicit manufacturing and importing of fentanyl has skyrocketed. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid, meaning it requires precursor chemicals to manufacture, and it is prescribed as a pain medication.

It is used as a direct substitute for heroin, but it is 50 times more powerful than heroin. In October, President Trump declared the opioid crisis a public health emergency.įentanyl is at the center of the opioid crisis in the United States. states have now declared public health emergencies to combat the opioid crisis. Some expect these numbers to have tripled for 2016, and six U.S. In 2015 (the most recent year with full data), 12.5 million people in the United States abused opioids, and it is estimated that 24,861 people died from overdoses of prescription and synthetic opioids.

But it is another opioid, tramadol, that threatens to wreak global havoc, and another Asian giant that is pouring it into the world. The opioid crisis continues to claim thousands of lives every month across the United States, driven in part by use of fentanyl, a powerful opioid primarily manufactured in China. This piece was originally published in The Diplomat.

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