Slaying the monster: Senate passes Murphy's bill designating xylazine as a controlled substance

Albany, NY – Everyone knows the story of Frankenstein’s monster, an enhanced being created in a laboratory. Once it was unleashed, the monster wreaked havoc on the community. The modern equivalent to the monster are super drugs laced with other substances by drug dealers to enhance their deadly potency. When he studied the increased use of Xylazine, a drug used by veterinarians, being employed to lace heroin, Senator Terrence Murphy was moved to take action. To slay this growing monster, Senator Terrence Murphy sponsored S300, which designates Xylazine as a controlled substance.

The heroin-Xylazine combination is so potent that it can take multiple doses of naloxone (Narcan) to revive an overdose victim. Even the use of Narcan is not guaranteed to be effective. Dealers are using this dangerous drug to “enhance” their products, but health risks include a dangerous depression of the central nervous system, which causes individuals to drift in and out of consciousness, as can have an adverse effect on heart function.

Senator Murphy said, “The passage of this legislation is another strong step forward in our fight to end the heroin and opioid epidemic. When combined with heroin this Zombie Drug is so potent that it can take multiple doses of Narcan to revive an overdose victim. Adding it to the controlled substance schedule provides another mode of diversion to keep it out of the hands of addicts and off our streets.”

The New York State Senate today continued legislative action on one of the chamber’s top priorities for the remaining session by passing six additional bills tackling the heroin, opioid, and synthetic drug crisis. The measures address the evolving challenges faced by fentanyl, synthetic, and designer drugs, as well as help increase coordination among health care personnel to prevent future opioid overdoses.

Senate Majority Leader John J. Flanagan said, “The Senate is at the forefront in taking legislative action to combat the state’s heroin crisis and was instrumental in securing $214 million in this year’s budget for measures to prevent and treat heroin and opioid abuse. When combined with the measures passed today and additional initiatives being pursued by our Task Force on Heroin and Opioid Addiction, we are enhancing the resources used by law enforcement and treatment professionals to address the health and public safety challenges facing our communities.”

The other measures passed today include:

• Adding new derivatives of fentanyl to the controlled substance schedule and increasing criminal penalties for the sale of an opiate containing a fentanyl derivative;
• Requiring hospital and emergency room physicians to notify a patients prescriber when a patient is being treated for a controlled substance overdose;
• Designating the designer drug Alpha-PVP, also known as “Flakka” or “Gravel” as a controlled substance;
• Expanding the state’s ability to ban analog substances that tweak and existing schedule substance in order to avoid criminal prohibitions;
• Adding U-47700, commonly referred to as “Pink” to the schedule 1 opiate list. The inexpensive drug is sweeping across the country and is eight times more powerful than heroin;
• Classifying synthetic marijuana such as K2, Spike 99, Spice, and Yucatan Fire, Genie, Zohai and others as Schedule 1 controlled substances.

The bill also makes it a felony to sell these products to a minor on school grounds.

The bills will be sent to the Assembly.