The synthetic opioids have caused deaths in the Keystone State.
On Thursday, U.S. Senator Dave McCormick introduced legislation that would permanently consider nitazenes a Schedule I substance.
A temporary classification imposed by the Drug Enforcement Administration would be made permanent and expanded by the bipartisan proposal.
The dangerous synthetic opioids have caused at least several dozen deaths in the Commonwealth.
Nitazenes are a potent opioid that are more powerful than fentanyl. The scheduling will allow for strict enforcement and penalties in relation to the substance.
“I’m greatly concerned that nitazenes would become the next fentanyl,” said Senator McCormick. He referred to fentanyl causing 4,000 deaths in Pennsylvania just last year.
Nitazenes are 40 times more powerful than fentanyl. They were first created as a potential alternative to morphine but were never approved for use in the United States.
In 2019, nitazenes first emerged in the illicit supply and have been discovered throughout bags of fentanyl in recent years.
Since 2023, nitazenes have been the cause of 45 deaths in Pennsylvania.
Senator McCormick’s legislation aims to permanently classify all 14 forms of nitazenes as Schedule I under the Controlled Substances Act. Under the legislation, nitazenes would have no accepted medical use and a high propensity for abuse.
Temporary scheduling by Governor Josh Shapiro’s administration already covers ten of the forms of nitazenes.
In a May report from the Drug Enforcement Administration, nitazenes were listed as a priority. According to data, at least five of the drug’s forms were present in seizures in 2024.
“This is one of those things where, we hope by being proactive now, we can avoid this becoming the next generation of potent drugs in Pennsylvania,” said Senator McCormick.
In July, China banned nitazenes and generic nitazene analogues.
Senator McCormick said, “This isn’t something we can wait to let play out, like the fentanyl crisis played out. We need to root out this issue before it becomes a full-blown crisis.”
