Source: United States Senator for Ohio Rob Portman
December 7, 2022 | Press Releases
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senators Rob Portman (R-OH) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), senior members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statements after the successful inclusion of their bipartisan legislation in the fiscal year (FY) 2023 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to increase global cooperation in the fight against synthetic drug trafficking. The NDAA is annual legislation that authorizes defense programming for the fiscal year.
The Fighting Emerging Narcotics through Additional Nations to Yield Lasting (FENTANYL) Results Act authorizes two programs through the State Department that would build foreign law enforcement capacity to detect synthetic drugs and carry out an international exchange program for drug demand reduction experts.
“With drug overdoses at an all-time high, Congress must do everything it can to stop synthetic opioids like fentanyl from destroying lives in America and around the world. I’m pleased this bipartisan legislation, designed to help to reduce the devastating effects of these deadly substances, is included in the final FY 2023 NDAA conference report,” said Senator Portman. “This legislation will strengthen State Department data collection on synthetic drug production while increasing international law enforcement capacity. This important effort will help us save lives and mitigate the devastating effects of deadly synthetic opioids, which have impacted families and communities all across Ohio and our country.”
“The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated what was already a crisis in New Hampshire and across America – the substance use epidemic. The circulation of fentanyl has fueled this crisis, which is why I’m leading bipartisan efforts with Senators Portman and Cornyn to clamp down on drug trafficking and prevent drugs from reaching our borders. Inclusion of the FENTANYL Results Act in the annual defense package makes clear that combating drug trafficking is a top national security priority,” said Shaheen. “Once this legislation becomes law, we can ensure more effective cooperation with international partners to prevent synthetic drugs from infecting our communities and save lives.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released data revealing that a record-breaking 107,000 Americans died from a drug overdose in 2021, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Illicitly manufactured fentanyl and other synthetic opioids were behind a majority of the deaths.
To read the full bill text of the FENTANYL Results Act, click here.
No one in the Senate has been more active in the fight against drug addiction than Senator Portman. As part of his efforts to help Ohio, Portman has worked to help stop the influx of synthetic drugs like fentanyl into this country – such as through passage of his bipartisan Synthetics Trafficking & Overdose Prevention (STOP) Act, to help stop dangerous synthetic drugs like fentanyl and carfentanil from being shipped from China to drug traffickers here in the United States through our own Postal System. He has also called out the Biden administration multiple times for its failure to control our southern border, which has led to record levels of fentanyl flowing across the border. He has worked to expand access to treatment programs for Americans suffering from addiction, which have been proven to be critical to an effective recovery, and secured additional funding for evidenced-based Comprehensive Addiction & Recovery Act (CARA) programs focused on prevention, treatment, recovery, and first responders.
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