U.S. Sen. Ashley Moody is part of a bipartisan group of lawmakers who have introduced a proposed bill that would call for Nitazene, synthetic opioids, to be classified as a Schedule 1 drug under the Controlled Substances Act.
Arizona Democrat Sen. Ruben Gallego and Pennsylvania Republican Sen. Dave McCormick are joining Moody to introduce the proposed Nitazene Control Act.
“As the former Attorney General of Florida, I signed an emergency rule adding deadly Nitazene compounds to the Schedule I controlled substance list and worked with the state Legislature to make that ban permanent,” Moody said.
“Now, as Florida’s newest U.S. Senator, I am taking this fight to the federal level by introducing the Nitazene Control Act with my colleagues that will extend this ban nationwide. These lethal synthetic opioid compounds pose an enormous threat to Americans, and this critical bill will help us save lives.”
Schedule 1 classification, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, is the highest rating for drugs that are considered to have the highest likelihood of abuse and the most severe psychological or physical dependence.
The Alcohol and Drug Foundation describes Nitazene as a synthetic drug developed about 60 years ago as an alternative to morphine. But the drug was never widely distributed due to a high potential for overdose. Nitazene is a component used in psychoactive substances such as ketamine, heroin and synthetic cannabinoids.
Gallego said Nitazene has already had a profound negative impact in Arizona and supports the proposed Schedule 1 classification of the substance.
“Families across Arizona have already been torn apart by the opioid and fentanyl epidemic, and now Nitazenes threaten to make this crisis even worse. These synthetic opioids are stronger and deadlier than fentanyl, and they are starting to be abused more frequently,” said Gallego. “The Nitazene Control Act will give law enforcement the tools they need to keep these drugs out of our communities and save lives. I’m proud to support this bipartisan bill to protect Arizona families from the next wave of the opioid epidemic.”
A similar bill was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Rep. Michael Buamgartner, a Washington Republican, and Rep. Eugene Vindman, a Virginia Democrat.
