Fentanyl test strips are currently classified as drug paraphernalia, making them illegal to carry in Mississippi. But starting July 1st of this year, a new law will decriminalize them as part of an effort to reduce opioid-related deaths. Dr. Katherine Pannel, Board member with the Mississippi State Medical Association, says around 1 in 4 pills obtained illegally are laced with the highly potent synthetic opioid.
“It’s extremely deadly because it’s so powerful. One pill literally can kill,” says Dr. Pannel. “Most people that are using, they have no idea that it’s being laced. So they’ll take that whole pill, and there’s enough to kill you.”
To use these strips, Dr Pannel says users just need a small sample of a pill, some drops of water, and the strip will change color if fentanyl is present. According to the Mississippi Department of Health, 70% of overdose deaths involve illicitly manufactured Fentanyl.
The bill was ushered through the legislature with bipartisan support, and is backed by experts in the medical field as well as law enforcement. Steven Maxwell, Director of the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics, says these strips will save lives.
“People who use drugs, their goal and their endgame is not to die, but to get high. And they’re using these drugs for any number of reasons. A lot of them are dealing with undiagnosed mental health and behaviour health issues, stress, anxiety, trauma,” says Maxwell. “We’ve got to position people where they can exercise their greatest degree of prudence, and these fentanyl test strips do that.”
Maxwell does warn that there is a margin for error in these strips and urges anyone uncertain about the contents of their pills to err on the side of caution.
Experts say these test strips will be available to legally purchase online in Mississippi starting in July, and could become more widely available in the following months.
