By Paul Stinson
Austin ISD school nurses are getting opioid overdose treatment Narcan as part of a fentanyl prevention and emergency response plan that includes a partnership with local AISD police, emergency management and local health authorities.
Why it matters: These steps, part of “Fake & Fatal” awareness campaign, comes in response to fentanyl overdoses in neighboring school districts and rising national numbers of fentanyl-related fatalities.
- With Halloween around the corner, the “Fake & Fatal” website offers community resources, fact sheets and tips for talking about the drug and its many forms, including brightly colored Fentapills that take on a similar appearance to candy.
By the numbers: Synthetic opioids such as fentanyl accounted for 67% of the 107,375 deaths attributed to drug overdoses and drug poisonings for the 12-month period ending Jan. 2022, according to the Centers for Disease and Control.
What they're saying: “Fentanyl is the single deadliest drug threat our nation has ever encountered,” said Drug Enforcement Agency Administrator Anne Milgram in a video statement posted to the agency’s website. "Tragically, many overdose victims have no idea they are ingesting deadly fentanyl until it's too late."