President Trump called on the Senate Monday to take up a bill to curb shipments of illicit fentanyl through the U.S. postal system, and also drew attention to the outsize role that the powerful painkiller is playing in overdose deaths.
“It is outrageous that Poisonous Synthetic Heroin Fentanyl comes pouring into the U.S. Postal System from China,” Trump tweeted on Monday. “We can, and must, END THIS NOW!”
It is outrageous that Poisonous Synthetic Heroin Fentanyl comes pouring into the U.S. Postal System from China. We can, and must, END THIS NOW! The Senate should pass the STOP ACT – and firmly STOP this poison from killing our children and destroying our country. No more delay!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 20, 2018
[Related: Nebraska the first to use fentanyl to carry out death penalty]
Trump then highlighted the Synthetics Trafficking and Overdose Prevention Act that aims to crack down on shipments of illicit fentanyl from overseas.
Fentanyl has become a key contributor in the opioid epidemic. Of the 42,000 opioid overdose deaths in 2016, more than half were due to fentanyl, which is 50 times more potent than heroin.
A recent congressional probe found that it is incredibly easy to buy illicit fentanyl from overseas. The vendors of the product solely use the U.S. postal service because it allows them easily to avoid detection and seizure, the probe found.
The STOP Act would require the postal service to install the same tracking delivery system used by private shippers like FedEx to try to identify and halt shipments of fentanyl. The bill would require foreign shipments to send electronic advance data on who and where the shipment is coming from and going to before the shipment crosses into the U.S.
“Having this information in advance will enable Customs & Border Protection officials to better target potential illegal packages and keep these dangerous drugs from entering the U.S.,” said Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, back in March. Portman is the lead senate sponsor of the bill alongside Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa.
The House passed the STOP Act in June as part of a large collection of bills aimed at combating the opioid crisis.
It now awaits action in the Senate, where Trump said senators should take it up without delay.
