Letter to the Hon. James Inhofe, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Armed Services and the Hon. Adam Smith, Chairman of the House Committee on Armed Services - Drug deaths surge in Manatee County

Letter

Dear Chairman Inhofe and Chairman Smith,

As you work to finalize a conference agreement for the fiscal year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act, I am urging you to include my legislation to help combat the flow of deadly, synthetic opioids being trafficked into the United States. The drug epidemic is a matter of national security.

For too long, fentanyl and other opioids have continued to wreak havoc on communities in Florida and across the country. As you know, 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 percent of pure fentanyl seized by U.S. officials in 2017 arrived from China.

That's why I teamed up with Congressman Seth Moulton (D-MA) to introduce the Fentanyl Sanctions Act (HR 2226). Specifically, the bill would impose sanctions on China-based drug manufacturers that knowingly send synthetic opioids to drug traffickers and other criminal operations. This bipartisan legislation would also authorize $600 million in funding for law enforcement to combat the trafficking of opioids across the globe.

As shocking as it may sound, the death rate from synthetic opioids like fentanyl has skyrocketed by 1,000 percent in six years, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In my own backyard of Manatee County, the sheriff's office has reported 601 overdoses and 61 deaths through October of this year -- more than twice as many deaths as this time last year.

And while I welcome China's announcement that it will ban all forms of fentanyl, we must ensure that their words are followed through with meaningful action. One disturbing 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.

We need to hold Beijing accountable for any lack of progress controlling the fentanyl freely flowing out of their country.

Again, I respectfully request that you include my provision to crack down on the dangerous and illicit fentanyl pouring into our country and thank you for your prompt attention to this critically important matter.

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