Fentanyl addiction can be deadly for the addict and devastating for those who love them. New data shows fentanyl is a top safety threat in Montana, said AG Knudsen.

“There’s no question that fentanyl is now the number one public safety threat facing Montana. Mexican drug cartels are pushing it across the border, flooding it into our state at an unprecedented rate – and killing Montana,” Attorney General Knudsen said.

Drug overdoses deaths increased 30 percent in the U.S. from 2019 to 2020, according to the CDC.

The number of fentanyl overdoses have also increased in number in Montana. Last year, the state crime lab saw fentanyl-linked fatal overdoses increase more then 1,100 percent since 2017. In just the last five months of 2022, there have been 34 confirmed fentanyl deaths. Dozens more are suspected but not yet confirmed. Opioid-related response by emergency medical services is up 57 percent in the past year.