Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., is not slowing down on her efforts to fight the drug addiction crisis, especially the flow of the deadly fentanyl into the nation and the state.

A new drug has also been added to the fight, Xylazine, which is a veterinary tranquilizer.

Capito introduced three bills this week related to that fight: The Combating Illicit Xylazine Act, the STOP Act 2.0, and the PREVENT Fentanyl Act.

“Fentanyl continues to have deadly consequences for communities across West Virginia, which is why our work to stop the flow of this harmful substance couldn’t be more urgent,” she said. “That is why I introduced multiple pieces of legislation that build on previous efforts to prevent the shipment of fentanyl into our country, crack down on mixed substances that are making these drugs even deadlier, and improves our coordination and training across all levels. We have lost far too many West Virginians to overdoses, and I will continue my efforts to put forward solutions that prevent these drugs from entering our state.”

The Combating Illicit Xylazine Act will crack down on and schedule illicit Xylazine, the highly dangerous sedative increasing the number of fatal overdoses nationwide.

Capito said Xylazine, also known as “tranq,” is an “easily accessible” veterinary tranquilizer that is being mixed with opioids, including fentanyl. Despite alarming reports about the rise of illicit xylazine – federal, state, and local law enforcement do not have the tools necessary to effectively crack down on dealers using it to increase their profits, she said. This legislation would schedule illicit use, while preserving legal use for veterinary purposes.

Capito, along with Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., introduced the STOP Act 2.0 to tackle the rise in illegal opioids entering the United States and West Virginia.

The STOP Act 2.0 builds on the Synthetics Trafficking & Overdose Prevention (STOP) Act, legislation Capito co-sponsored that was signed into law in 2018. The STOP Act prevents fentanyl and synthetic drug shipments from being smuggled into the U.S. through the mail by requiring advance electronic data (AED) to be included on all inbound international packages shipped through the U.S. Postal Service.

Capito, Klobuchar, Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., and Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., introduced the Providing Resources for Exceptional Veterans to End Narcotic Trafficking of Fentanyl (PREVENT Fentanyl) Act to increase training for investigating cyber fentanyl trafficking crimes.

Specifically, the legislation would allow the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) HERO Child-Rescue corps members, who currently focus on tackling child exploitation cases, to also assist in investigating fentanyl trafficking.

Capito said during a virtual press briefing Thursday she is happy Narcan, an antidote to opioid overdoses, has been approved by the FDA for over-the-counter sales.

However, she said Narcan does not work with Xylazine, which is a “killer.”

Capito recently visited Mexico and talked with Pres. Lopez Obrador about the fentanyl crisis and about more cooperation in dealing with the drug trade, smuggling deadly fentanyl across the southern border.

The problem is, she said in a virtual interview after that trip, China is sending precursors, chemicals, into Mexico for the production of fentanyl and this is “totally controlled by the cartels.”

“We implored the president to be more aggressive with China to prevent these precursors,” she said, adding that he actually said he will “forcefully” talk with China about this.

“Hopefully, we can stop the flow, or at least slow it down,” she said. “Mexico has to be a partner with us on drugs,” she added.

Capito is also a proponent of doing more on the prevention side of addiction to lower the demand, which would lower the supply.

“The fentanyl problem in this country is a demand problem,” she said. “We talked about this with the Mexican president and he emphasizes that part of the problem. This is not just Mexico, so sending the drugs through there by the cartels and the illicit method, you’ve got people who want this and there is demand out there so there is big money at stake.”

Capito is emphasizing the education part of prevention.

“We need to go all the way down into the kindergarten, first, second and third grade levels,” she said of education about the dangers of drugs. “The DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) is moving forward with a program called ‘One Pill Can Kill.’ One pill can kill and the first time. You can take a pill and it can kill you.”