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Advocacy


Published on Jan 16, 2023

House to consider new ban on fentanyl manufacturing equipment

Contact: Candice Bock, Katherine Walton

A bill restricting the possession, purchase, delivery, and sale of the kinds of equipment used to process fentanyl is set for a hearing in the House.

HB 1209 is being sponsored by Rep. Mari Leavitt (D–University Place), would make it a class C felony for any person to possess, purchase, deliver, sell, or possess with intent to sell a tableting machine or encapsulating machine knowing that it could be used for controlled substances.

The use of illicitly manufactured fentanyl has caused a spike in opioid overdose deaths in Washington and particularly affects younger people. Most illicit fentanyl in Washington is in tablet form and made to look like legal prescription opioid pills. The Addictions, Drug & Alcohol Institute (ADAI) at the University of Washington recently released a report showing dramatic increases in opioid overdose deaths due to fentanyl among young people in Washington, doubling in four years among people under 30 to eight per 100,000. Most cases of opioid overdose and death are now linked to the use of fentanyl, according to the WA Department of Health (DOH).

 

Dates to remember


HB 1209 is scheduled for public hearing in the House Safety, Justice, & Reentry Committee on Tuesday, January 17 at 4 pm.

  • Advocacy
  • Public safety & criminal justice
  • Human services

 

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