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The U.S. is preparing to announce a deal with Mexico to counter fentanyl coming across the southern border, with Mexico cracking down on labs and smuggling while the U.S. does more to stop the flow of U.S. guns into Mexico, two sources familiar with the strategy told NBC News. Mexican military and police, with the help of U.S. law enforcement, will focus on tracking raw materials for fentanyl being shipped to Mexico, finding and shutting down labs that make the deadly synthetic opioid and going after key players in the illicit fentanyl trade, the sources said. (Ainsley, 3/27)

As a street drug, fentanyl is largely produced by clandestine labs in Mexico from chemical precursors sourced from China, according to the State Department’s 2022 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report. ... Its path to the U.S. is surprisingly straightforward; data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows 90 percent or more of fentanyl seizures have happened at U.S. ports of entry, while a fraction of fentanyl is captured between ports of entry. (Beitsch and Bernal, 3/27)

Teen overdose deaths have doubled in three years, an alarming trend amid a historic decline in drug and alcohol use among high school students.  The main reason is fentanyl. Teens consume the powerful opioid unwittingly, packaged in counterfeit pills tailored to resemble less potent prescription medications. Drug traffickers lace pills with fentanyl to boost the black-market high. Dangerously addictive, fentanyl can be lethal, especially to children experimenting with drugs. (Vise, 3/26)

Public health workers will soon have a new tool at their disposal to thwart a spreading danger to users of illicit drugs: xylazine test strips. The new testing kits will allow health departments, grassroots harm-reduction groups, and individual drug users to test substances for the presence of xylazine, a sedative often referred to as “tranq.” (Facher, 3/27)

As drug overdoses and deaths increase in North Carolina, as they are in many parts of the country, a bill to strengthen penalties for illegal drug distribution is quickly moving through the state legislature. Senate Republicans introduced Senate Bill 189 in early March during a news conference where lawmakers were surrounded by law enforcement and families who have lost loved ones to drug overdose. North Carolina sheriffs and district attorneys say they need this bill to impose higher penalties and lengthier prison sentences on people who distribute fentanyl — the potent synthetic opioid that’s been added to many street drugs in recent years. (Knopf, 3/27)

On top of sharing their story, Nancy Fowler is also working with lawmakers to loosen restrictions on fentanyl testing strips - strips of paper that can detect the presence of fentanyl in drugs. You could buy them on Amazon, but not in Texas. “Amazon will not currently ship to Texas because these testing strips are currently illegal in Texas. They're considered drug paraphernalia," Fowler said. (Bludau, 3/24)

Texas lawmakers drafted a bill that would allow physicians to prescribe medicinal cannabis for patients battling chronic pain instead of opioid prescriptions. HB 1805 authored by Rep. Stephanie Klick, R-Tarrant County, was approved by the House Public Health Committee with a 10-0 vote Monday, March 20. (Holmes-Brown, 3/25)

Cannabis use can create particular risks for older people. It can interfere with other medications, which is tricky for seniors because they are often on multiple prescription drugs. Marijuana can also raise the risks of injuries, falls, anxiety and confusion. The situation is further complicated because many seniors may be wary of telling their doctors they use it. (Reddy, 3/26)