Governor Abbott launches a statewide ‘One Pill Kills’ campaign

Governor Greg Abbott has announced the launch of the state of Texas’ coordinated “One Pill Kills” campaign to combat the growing national fentanyl crisis plaguing Texas and the United States. This announcement comes after Governor Abbott focused government agencies to step up efforts to combat last month’s deadly fentanyl crisis.

Following a roundtable discussion with state and local law enforcement officials, the governor was joined by Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw and Beaumont Police Chief James Singletary for a press conference highlighting the severity of the fentanyl crisis and outlining comprehensive measures taken by the state. of Texas to address the unprecedented influx of this deadly drug into communities across the state.

“Fentanyl remains the deadliest drug threat our state and nation has ever faced, killing four Texans every day,” said Governor Abbott. “Fentanyl is a clandestine killer, with Mexican drug cartels strategically producing and distributing the drug disguised as painkillers, stimulants, anti-anxiety drugs and even candy. In the Biden administration’s failure to address this national security threat, Texas has designated Mexican drug cartels. as terrorist organizations and is launching a statewide public awareness campaign to combat the fentanyl crisis in our state. I am proud to announce the launch of the State of Texas’ comprehensive One Pill Kills campaign to remind Texans that just one pill is laced with fentanyl. can take someone’s life. Together we will ensure that more innocent lives are lost to this deadly drug.”

Governor Abbott also announced new laws to be taken into consideration during the upcoming legislative session that would classify fentanyl as a poisoning, allowing an individual to be charged with murder if he distributes fentanyl or fentanyl-infused drugs that someone deaths, and making NARCAN more readily available across the state to Texans exposed to fentanyl.

Last year, nearly 1,700 Texans lost their lives to fentanyl. Fentanyl is the number one killer of Americans between the ages of 18 and 45. From February 2021 to February 2022, more than 75,000 Americans died from fentanyl-related overdoses. Last year, police in Texas alone seized more than 342 million lethal doses of fentanyl – enough to kill every man, woman and child in the United States.