AG’s across states urge ban on deadly drug called ‘designer Xanax’

(WBRE/WYOU) — Attorney General Dave Sunday joined a coalition calling on the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration to take action on the ban of a drug linked to deaths in Pennsylvania and across the country.

In a letter to DEA Administrator Terry Cole, 21 Attorneys General issued a warning on bromazolam, a dangerous and unregulated designer drug often referred to as “designer Xanax.”

According to the release, the synthetic drug is “highly potent and unpredictable, especially when mixed with opioids.”

“Designer” benzodiazepines, such as bromazolam, appeared in Pennsylvania starting in 2022, when they were part of 59 overdose deaths, with bromazolam most commonly found, AG Sunday stated.

That figure nearly tripled a year later, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Authorities noted that Narcan is ineffective against the drug in overdose emergencies.

“It is a race to stay ahead of drug traffickers when dealing with synthetic drugs, and lives depend on immediate action that will give law enforcement the tools to proactively target traffickers. This substance has no legitimate purpose and is becoming far too common in Pennsylvania and across the nation.”

Attorney General Dave Sunday

Authorities reported that some drug traffickers selling bromazolam are incorrectly labeling the drug as “legal prescription drugs” or they may be adding bromazolam to other drugs, including fentanyl, other opioids, or methamphetamine.

Attorney General Sunday joined the Kentucky-led letter along with Attorneys General from Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.