Tag: fentanyl test strips

Tennessee Touts Fentanyl Test Strip Success on International Overdose Awareness Day

Peter D'Abrosca

As part of Thursday’s International Overdose Awareness Day, the Tennessee Department Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (TDMHSAS) touted the success of fentanyl test strips, which are meant to reduce overdoses involving the deadly drug. 

“With new legislation passed by the Tennessee General Assembly in the spring 2022 session, TDMHSAS has been distributing fentanyl test strips for the past year to great success,” the department said. “The department distributed 125,000 test strips in the first year, and data collected from participants shows outcomes that surpass prior studies.”

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Pennsylvania Hospitals May Soon Test for Fentanyl

The Center Square

Pennsylvania hospitals may soon test urine samples for fentanyl and xylazine, two of the most common additives found in heroin.

The state government legalized fentanyl test strips for personal use last year, following a number of other states responding to more overdose deaths in the last decade. More than 5,200 Pennsylvanians have died from an overdose death in the last year, according to CDC data.

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Allowing Fentanyl Test Strips Advances in Pennsylvania Senate

The Center Square

Republican legislators in the General Assembly have embraced a harm-reduction approach to deal with drug overdose deaths.

The Senate Judiciary Committee last week advanced a House bill to legalize fentanyl test strips by removing them from the definition of “drug paraphernalia.” The strips can detect fentanyl in other drugs such as heroin, which can help users avoid accidental overdoses.

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