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State leaders are launching a new effort to combat an alarming increase of overdoses caused by a synthetic opioid that’s fueling America’s drug crisis.

On Wednesday, U.S. Attorney for Maryland Robert Hur said all arrests involving fentanyl distribution will now be reviewed by both U.S. and Baltimore officials to determine if they can be handled in the federal system.

That means people charged federally under the new plan could face longer sentences and no parole.

Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid up to 50 times more powerful than heroin, was the driving force behind Maryland’s all-time high number of drug fatalities last year, which increased from 1,119 in 2016 to 1,594 in 2017. This year, more than 2,000 Marylanders are expected to die from fentanyl use.

Source: Fox Baltimore

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State Introduces New Effort to Fight Rise in Fentanyl Deaths  was originally published on wolbbaltimore.com