Buchanan Calls on Congress to Bolster Response Against Chinese Fentanyl

Press Release

U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL) today urged Congress to pass his legislation to compel China to take on fentanyl produced and exported from the country.

Buchanan's call to action follows a May report by the RAND Corporation stating that the Chinese government is unlikely to crack down on domestic production of illicit fentanyl. In April, the Chinese government announced that it would ban all forms of fentanyl. However, concerns remain about Beijing's poor enforcement record.

"Fentanyl and other opioids have plagued Florida communities and torn apart many families and lives," Buchanan said. "China's pledge to ban all forms of fentanyl must be followed by meaningful action. It is alarming that despite an intricate state security apparatus, the Chinese government has an especially poor record of fighting fentanyl producers."

In April, Buchanan and Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA) introduced the Fentanyl Sanctions Act, bipartisan legislation to force China to stem the flow of deadly, synthetic opioids being trafficked into the United States. The lawmakers recently wrote an op-ed in The Hill on the need to pass their legislation.

"If China is unable to made good on its commitment, it must be met with an overwhelming response from Congress," Buchanan continued. "That is why I am continuing to push for passage of the Fentanyl Sanctions Act. We need to hold the Chinese government accountable for any lack of progress controlling the fentanyl freely flowing out of the country."

Fentanyl is a synthetic drug similar to heroin but 50 times more powerful. These drugs are often manufactured in foreign countries and mailed into the United States. In fact, an estimated 80% of pure fentanyl seized by U.S. officials in 2017 arrived from China.

Companion legislation was introduced in the Senate by a bipartisan group that includes Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Chuck Schumer (D-NY).

One report details that between 2015 and 2016, 1,072 shipments of fentanyl were seized by American officials before it could enter the U.S. Meanwhile, China only had four instances of seizing the substance before it could be exported.

Specifically, the Fentanyl Sanctions Act would:

Impose sanctions on China-based drug manufacturers that knowingly send synthetic opioids to drug traffickers and other criminal operations.
Authorize $600 million in funding for law enforcement to combat the trafficking of opioids across the globe.
Create a new federal commission to combat synthetic opioid trafficking that will include the Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Agency, Secretary of Homeland Security, Secretary of Defense, Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of State.
Synthetic opioids, like fentanyl, were responsible for the greatest increase in opioid deaths in Florida between 2012 and 2017. Its many spinoffs can be even more powerful, especially the elephant tranquilizer carfentanil, and they led to more deaths in Manatee County than any other county in Florida in 2016.

Meanwhile, in Massachusetts, the opioid-overdose related death rate has tripled in four years from 691 to 1,990, and Fentanyl has overtaken prescription drugs and heroin as the leading cause of opioid-overdose deaths.

According to the New York Times, since 2013, U.S. overdose deaths related to fentanyl and similar substances have skyrocketed from 3,000 to 28,000.

Buchanan has been an active leader in addressing the opioid crisis in Florida. Last year, a Buchanan-backed bill (the INTERDICT Act) to help stem the flow of illicit opioids, was signed into law, as well as the STOP Act to toughen screening of overseas shipments of deadly synthetic drugs coming into the United States. In 2017, Buchanan was successful in securing millions of dollars in funding for our area of Southwest Florida to confront the opioid epidemic.

He has consistently pushed to raise awareness of the Suncoast's drug problems including chairing a hearing specifically examining the impact of addiction on families and children. Buchanan also hosted a roundtable in Bradenton, Fla. with local police officers, medical professionals and stakeholders and led a meeting of the bipartisan 29-member Florida congressional delegation in Washington, DC where members heard testimony from anti-drug experts.

In 2014, the Food and Drug Administration and the Drug Enforcement Administration adopted Buchanan's proposal to make it more difficult for abusers to obtain certain highly addictive narcotics.

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