Katie Kerekes, FISM News
A recent report has found that children under the age of 14 are dying of fentanyl poisoning at a faster rate than any other age group, according to data published by non-profit Families Against Fentanyl (FAF).
Statistics gathered between 2019 and 2021 found a shocking 300% fatality increase in infants under a year, a 221% fatality increase in children ages one to four, and a 275% fatality increase in children ages five to 14.
“Synthetic opioid (fentanyl) fatalities doubled in the U.S. regardless of age from 2019 to 2021,” the report reads. “In just two years, they more than tripled among children ages 1 to 4, and increased nearly 4x among infants younger than one year, and children ages 5 to 14.”
Since 2015, infant fatalities have increased tenfold, while deaths in children ages one to 14 have increased 1400%, or 15 fold.
“These disturbing new findings should serve as a wake-up call to our nation’s leaders,” said Jim Rauh, founder of Families Against Fentanyl. “Families Against Fentanyl is calling for the Biden administration to declare fentanyl a weapon of mass destruction and immediately establish a White House task force dedicated to the fentanyl crisis.”
According to the analysis, fentanyl is the number one cause of death among Americans aged 18-45, yet less than one percent of all fentanyl deaths in 2021 were intentional. This is a stark contrast from the year 2000, in which 25% of fentanyl deaths were intentional.
“Americans deserve to know what is being done to save lives, and what is being done to uncover and stop the international manufacturers and traffickers of illicit fentanyl. This is the number one killer of our nation’s young adults. It is killing more and more children each year. It’s time to treat this threat with the urgency it deserves” said Rauh.
Rauh, who founded FAF after his son was killed by fentanyl poisoning, is critical of the American government’s response to the fentanyl epidemic. The drug is currently being produced internationally, particularly in Mexico with chemicals produced in China, and Rauh says the current administration’s border policy facilitates the operation.
A state-by-state report also published by FAF shows the highest increase was in border states Texas, New Mexico, and California, with neighboring states such as Colorado, Louisiana, Oregon, and Idaho feeling the effects as well.