Health Officials Around the State Warn of Fentanyl Laced in Other Drugs

Wednesday, January 31st, 2024 -- 12:01 PM

(Hope Kirwan, Wisconsin Public Radio) At the end of December, Kenosha County saw a string of nine overdoses in a 12-day period, including three in one day.

According to Hope Kirwan with Wisconsin PUblic Radio, Kenosha County Medical Examiner Patrice Hall issued a press release on Dec. 31 warning the public of the risk. “Substances of all sorts are being laced with fentanyl, which can be deadly when used even in small amounts,” Hall said in the press release. “If you obtain drugs illegally, you truly do not know what you are getting.”

Official statistics about the number of overdose deaths in 2023 won’t be released for months. But officials around the state say the continued presence of fentanyl in almost all types of drugs purchased illicitly has continued to worsen the problem in Wisconsin.

For Kenosha County, unofficial death statistics show there were 43 drug-related deaths last year. Thirty-two of those deaths involved fentanyl, a higher percent than in 2022 but similar to 2021. In western Wisconsin, La Crosse County saw a record number of overdose deaths in 2023.

The county medical examiner reported 55 suspected overdose deaths for the year, far surpassing the previous record high set in 2020 of 40 deaths. Of the deaths with completed toxicology results in 2023, 72 percent involved fentanyl last year.

Dr. Chris Eberlein, emergency medicine physician at Gundersen Health System, said fentanyl became a predominant drug in 2022. But what has changed is the fact that the potent opioid is now present in almost every type of illicit drug sold, including previously unaffected substances like cocaine.

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