Statement from Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey A. Rosen Calling Upon the House of Representatives to Vote to Extend Scheduling of Fentanyl-Related Substances

eputy Attorney General Jeffrey A. Rosen issued the following statement:
“Sadly, in 2017, more than 1,000 Americans died every two weeks from fentanyl and fentanyl-related substances. In an effort to combat this deadly drug epidemic, DOJ’s Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in February 2018 issued a temporary emergency two-year order that made illegal all fentanyl-related substances. Our country has seen a marked supply impact from DEA’s temporary scheduling of fentanyl-related substances during the past two years, with a 50 percent decrease in fentanyl-related substances encountered across the United States. However, DEA’s emergency authority expires at midnight on February 6, 2020, unless Congress acts to extend it.