WASHINGTON D.C., United States – February 2018: On 6 February 2018, the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) issued a temporary order to schedule fentanyl-related substances into Schedule I, pursuant to the provisions of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). The fentanyl-related substances include substances that are structurally related to fentanyl by one or more modifications, are not under control, and present a significant risk to the public health and safety. This temporary scheduling is effective until 6 February 2020. Substances in Schedule I of the CSA are those that have a high potential for abuse, no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and a lack of accepted safety for use under medical supervision. In the United States, deaths associated with the use of substances structurally related to fentanyl have reached alarming levels, leading to a public health crisis.

Further information on fentanyl analogues and their health risks is available in the recent UNODC publications, “Fentanyl and its analogues - 50 years on” and “Recommended Methods for the Identification and Analysis of Fentanyl and its Analogues in Biological Specimens”.

Carfentanil - Source: UNODC


For more information, please see:

Federal Register of the United states Government “Schedules of Controlled Substances: Temporary Placement of Fentanyl-Related Substances in Schedule I”
www.federalregister.gov/documents/2018/02/06/2018-02319/schedules-of-controlled-substances-temporary-placement-of-fentanyl-related-substances-in-schedule-i

UNODC Recommended Methods for the Identification and Analysis of Fentanyl and its Analogues in Biological Specimens
www.unodc.org/documents/scientific/Recommended_methods_for_the_identification_and_analysis_of_Fentanyl.pdf

UNODC Report “Fentanyl and its analogues - 50 years on”
www.unodc.org/documents/scientific/Global_SMART_Update_Vol.17_web.pdf