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From 2000 to 2015 more than half a million people died from drug overdoses. Shockingly, 91 people in America die from an opioid overdose each day.
Now, a new enemy has joined in the drug war in America, and it is an enemy that will kill with just one dose. The latest drug in the opioid crisis is labeled with the portentous name of “Gray Death”.
This new drug cocktail is a combination of several drugs. Beginning with Heroin, Fentanyl is added. Fentanyl, is at least 50 times stronger than morphine. A small dose of Carfentanil, an elephant tranquilizer thousands of times stronger than morphine, along with a synthetic opioid called U-47700, also known as “Pink” or “U4, are also added.
Resembling a piece of concrete, the drug can be injected, inhaled, swallowed, or smoked. In the first four months of 2017, Gray Death had already claimed 50 lives. It’s inexpensive street value price of $10.00 to $20.00 has made it readily available to users. Indeed, Gray Death is so strong that it is even too dangerous to handle with gloves on.
Along with Gray Death, many opioids have become available on the black market, alongside heroin, and are also a cause of the dramatic increase in drug-related overdoses and deaths. As the number of adults taking Gray Death and other opioids increase, the number of children being placed into foster care also increases. “The heroin epidemic is forcing more kids into foster care, but in most states, funding can’t keep up with the need,” according to Lana Freeman and the National Foster Parent Association. “The states need more foster families, the workers need more resources, and parents need more services.”
As the number of children being placed into foster care continues to increase, the foster care system is struggling to keep up. With roughly 450,000 children in foster care across the nation, there are not enough foster homes, as foster care agencies face the challenge of recruitment and retention of foster parents. The end result is simply that there are not enough homes for children in need to be placed in, or a child is moved from one home to another.
According to Russ Baer of the federal Drug Enforcement Agency, “No one should underestimate the deadly nature associated with these cocktails. You can buy one of these cocktails for $10-$20 on the street and lose your life in a few seconds.”
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Photo Credit: Getty Images
The post The Gray Death: The Most Powerful and Dangerous Opioid Drug Yet appeared first on The Good Men Project.