As federal officials tout progress in reducing fentanyl-related deaths nationwide, The Tennessee Star’s Lead Reporter Tom Pappert is warning how a new synthetic opioid originating in China is now raising alarm bells in East Tennessee.
On Tuesday’s edition of The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, Pappert discussed his recent reporting on the emergence of N-Propionitrile Chlorphine, also known as cychlorphine, which has been linked to 28 overdose deaths in East Tennessee since mid-2025.
Pappert said the development comes at a time when the Trump administration is seeing success in its campaign against fentanyl.
“This comes as the Trump administration is reportedly seeing some serious success in his fight against fentanyl,” Pappert said. “Fentanyl is down in the country. Overdose deaths are down. Kash Patel has reported last year that he’s working with his Chinese counterparts. They’ve made the precursor chemicals illegal.”
Pappert was referring to statements from FBI Director Kash Patel, who previously announced cooperation from Chinese officials in banning chemicals used to manufacture fentanyl.
Despite that progress, Pappert said local officials in Knox County are bringing attention to what appears to be a new and potentially more dangerous threat.
“Last week [the county medical examiner] reported at a conference there is a new type of opioid in Tennessee, specifically in east Tennessee called Psych Morphine,” Pappert said. “This is a new drug. It’s not even approved for use by doctors. It’s created in China. It began in 2024, spread to Eastern Europe and now is in the United States.”
Pappert emphasized that Knox County’s advanced forensic capabilities may be why the drug has been detected there ahead of other jurisdictions.
“What’s interesting about this is the medical examiner’s office in East Tennessee and Knox County said specifically that Knox County has very good testing. They have very good screening. This is likely all throughout Tennessee and most of the United States, but medical examiners simply aren’t screening it yet,” he said.
According to Pappert, the drug is believed to be involved in 28 overdose deaths in East Tennessee since the middle of last year.
“They say that it is potentially a more lethal, stronger drug than fentanyl. It is so far believed to be involved, if not because of 28 overdose deaths in East Tennessee,” he said.
When asked about potential government action, Pappert said he believes authorities are still working to understand the scope of the problem.
“At this stage, I think that the government and medical community is in a phase where they’re trying to get their heads around the problem,” Pappert said. “The administration actually last year placed this drug on its list of prohibited substances on its schedule. But so far it seems as though the political aspect of this has yet to become clear to the public.”
He predicted that federal attention may soon shift toward combating newer synthetic opioids as fentanyl flows decline.
“I have a feeling that over the next 18 months or so, we’re going to see the Trump administration shift from discussion about fentanyl and begin warning against and acting against these new novel drugs that they seem to be bringing in just as fentanyl is going out,” Pappert said.
Pappert also suggested that Chinese suppliers may be adapting to U.S. enforcement efforts.
“Everybody thought the fight [against drugs] was going so well. We were bombing these drug boats that each could kill 60,000 citizens, Kash Patel was reporting that the Chinese were essentially bowing to all of Trump’s demands amid his tariff threats. And it seems as though those tariff threats are going to have to be renewed and maybe the tariffs raised because I think they found a way to loophole a way around what the president is doing,” he said.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
