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Fentanyl is extremely potent - its clinically relevant doses are measured in micrograms. Appears they were concerned with reducing mortality first.

InitialLastName 9y ago
What? Public health-oriented drug enforcement? Who would do such a thing? \s
- WJW 9y ago
  Surprisingly common in the Netherlands.
etcet 9y ago
But surely the market for Fentanyl "[took] place anyway but on a different market"? It's such a short sighted move in an otherwise well played plan.
- wbl 9y ago
  Maybe not. No one wants fentanyl: they want diacetylmorphine, and will take fentanyl if they can't find morphine. Opiates are all the same.
  - stordoff 9y ago
    Did you meant _aren't _ all the same? They're certainly similar, and fentanyl will satisfy the cravings of those addicted to other opiates, but compared to heroin/diacetylmorphine has a shorter duration of action and reportedly less euphoric/more sedative effects.
HarryHirsch 9y ago
I'm asking half-seriously here: assuming the fentanyl pill guy could demonstrate Good Manufacturing Practice, i.e. dose constant and as advertised and equally distributed throughout the pill, would he be sentenced more leniently?
- anarazel 9y ago
  I think it's commonly used to cut other drugs (coke), so I don't think that argument would go far.
  - stordoff 9y ago
    I'd be very surprised if the fentanyl (or its analogues) in cocaine is deliberate (unless the goal is to harm users, which seems unlikely) - they are very different drugs. It's used more to be passed off as other opiates, because it's much cheaper and its potency makes it much easier to smuggle (carfentanyl being approximate 5000 times more potent than heroin). I'd suspect that the fentanyl in cocaine is coming from cross-contamination - lethal doses of carfentanyl are measured in micrograms, so anything less than perfect cleaning of equipment used to process both drugs could result in a fatality.
    - grzm 9y ago
      Mixing cocaine and heroin is not all that uncommon. Sounds like a variant of a speedball: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speedball_(drug) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speedball_(drug)
      - stordoff 9y ago
        Sure, there are certainly users who will mix the drugs, but mixing the two and then selling it as just cocaine seems strange. Supplying strong opiates to the (potentially) opiate-naive without their knowledge seems to be an unnecessary risk, and it is probably bad for business as you aren't supplying the experience that a cocaine user may be looking for.
      - megaremote 9y ago
        It is very uncommon.
    - anarazel 9y ago
      There's press reports about the DEA warning about it. E.g.: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/florida/fl-reg-cocaine-cut-opioids-20171215-story.html http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/florida/fl-reg-cocaine-cut-... That's what I remembered.

InitialLastName 9y ago

What? Public health-oriented drug enforcement? Who would do such a thing? \s

WJW 9y ago
Surprisingly common in the Netherlands.

etcet 9y ago

But surely the market for Fentanyl "[took] place anyway but on a different market"? It's such a short sighted move in an otherwise well played plan.

wbl 9y ago
Maybe not. No one wants fentanyl: they want diacetylmorphine, and will take fentanyl if they can't find morphine. Opiates are all the same.
- stordoff 9y ago
  Did you meant _aren't _ all the same? They're certainly similar, and fentanyl will satisfy the cravings of those addicted to other opiates, but compared to heroin/diacetylmorphine has a shorter duration of action and reportedly less euphoric/more sedative effects.

HarryHirsch 9y ago

I'm asking half-seriously here: assuming the fentanyl pill guy could demonstrate Good Manufacturing Practice, i.e. dose constant and as advertised and equally distributed throughout the pill, would he be sentenced more leniently?

anarazel 9y ago
I think it's commonly used to cut other drugs (coke), so I don't think that argument would go far.
- stordoff 9y ago
  I'd be very surprised if the fentanyl (or its analogues) in cocaine is deliberate (unless the goal is to harm users, which seems unlikely) - they are very different drugs. It's used more to be passed off as other opiates, because it's much cheaper and its potency makes it much easier to smuggle (carfentanyl being approximate 5000 times more potent than heroin). I'd suspect that the fentanyl in cocaine is coming from cross-contamination - lethal doses of carfentanyl are measured in micrograms, so anything less than perfect cleaning of equipment used to process both drugs could result in a fatality.
  - grzm 9y ago
    Mixing cocaine and heroin is not all that uncommon. Sounds like a variant of a speedball: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speedball_(drug) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speedball_(drug)
    - stordoff 9y ago
      Sure, there are certainly users who will mix the drugs, but mixing the two and then selling it as just cocaine seems strange. Supplying strong opiates to the (potentially) opiate-naive without their knowledge seems to be an unnecessary risk, and it is probably bad for business as you aren't supplying the experience that a cocaine user may be looking for.
    - megaremote 9y ago
      It is very uncommon.
  - anarazel 9y ago
    There's press reports about the DEA warning about it. E.g.: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/florida/fl-reg-cocaine-cut-opioids-20171215-story.html http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/florida/fl-reg-cocaine-cut-... That's what I remembered.