US EditionDepartment of Health Reclassifies Fentanyl Copycats
UNITED STATES, JUL 17 – The HALT Fentanyl Act imposes permanent Schedule I status on fentanyl and mandates minimum 10-year sentences, while China agrees to death penalty for traffickers, aiming to curb over 450,000 U.S. deaths.
- On July 16, 2025, President Donald Trump signed the HALT Fentanyl Act in the White House East Room, making fentanyl and analogues permanent Schedule I substances.
- Amid an opioid crisis that began with prescription painkillers, Senator Cassidy introduced the bill, arguing the DEA lacked authority to enforce harsher penalties amid imported synthetic opioids.
- DEA records show 60 million fentanyl-laced pills seized last year, and federal data report 80,400 overdose deaths with nearly 60% from fentanyl, highlighting crisis magnitude.
- President Trump said China will impose the death penalty on fentanyl traffickers, addressing a crowd that included family members of overdose victims.
- The law mandates a minimum 10-year prison sentence for distributing 100 grams of fentanyl, enough to kill about 50,000 people, and analysts say lasting progress requires healthcare reform, treatment funding and global cooperation.
27 Articles
27 Articles
Colorado Springs Gazette
Department of Health reclassifies fentanyl copycats
(The Center Square) – In recent years, synthetic opioids including copycat versions of fentanyl have taken an opioid crisis that began with prescription painkillers and dragged it to new depths. Among this new wave is a class of drugs called…
D.C. Dispatch: Iowa legislators cheer fentanyl reclassification, federal spending cuts • Iowa Capital Dispatch
President Donald Trump signs the HALT Fentanyl Act, July 16, 2025, in the East Room of the White House. Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley is second from the right. (Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok)This week in the nation’s capital, President Donald Trump signed a fentanyl reclassification act led by Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, Iowa legislators cheered the passing of a federal rescission bill through Congress and House members helped send a $832 …
Cherokee Tribune Ledger News
D.C. Dispatch: Iowa legislators cheer fentanyl reclassification, federal spending cuts
This week in the nation’s capital, President Donald Trump signed a fentanyl reclassification act led by Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, Iowa legislators cheered the passing of a federal rescission bill through Congress and House members helped send a $832 billion…
New Law Increases Penalties for Manufacturing, Distributing Fentanyl
President Trump signed a law yesterday increasing penalties for manufacturing and distributing fentanyl, a synthetic opiate responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of Americans every year. The HALT Fentanyl Act (H.R. 331) reclassifies fentanyl and fentanyl-related substances (FRS) from a Schedule 2 to Schedule 1 drugs. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) reserves this category for chemicals with: A high potential for abuse. …
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