Illicit fentanyl, a powerful opioid that is driving overdose deaths in North America, is a major public health crisis — and some policymakers believe the drug is so deadly, it should be reclassified and put into the same category as nuclear bombs and mustard gas.
As the U.S. midterm elections edge closer, calls to label fentanyl a "weapon of mass destruction" (WMD) have emerged from both Democrats and Republicans. In June, Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) introduced the "Fentanyl is a WMD Act," a short, two-paragraph bill that directs the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to "treat illicit fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction."
