The Louisiana Department of Health is launching a statewide campaign to raise awareness about the alarming rates of fatal overdoses involving the powerful opioid fentanyl, which can be up to 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine.

The campaign is designed to raise awareness about the use of fentanyl in both illicit drugs and in counterfeit pills that are often marketed as legitimate prescription drugs. It is critical that Louisiana residents be aware that fentanyl-laced pills are being marketed online and on social media.

Counterfeit pills and other illicit substances laced with fentanyl were involved in the deaths of more than 1,000 Louisiana residents in 2022, according to Louisiana Opioid Data and Surveillance System data. Fatal fentanyl overdoses have increased sharply in Louisiana since 2019: In 2022, 64.9% of suspected drug-related fatalities in Louisiana involved fentanyl, according to post-mortem toxicology tests. That was up from 41.6% of fatalities involving fentanyl in 2019.

Fentanyl is potent enough to cause an opioid overdose in extremely small quantities: Just 2 milligrams can trigger a lethal overdose. It is impossible to tell whether an illicit drug or a counterfeit prescription pill contains fentanyl, and over 40% of pills seized and tested by the Drug Enforcement Agency contained a potentially lethal dose of fentanyl.

LDH is urging residents this Fentanyl Awareness Day to: Know the dangers of fentanyl Learn the signs of an overdose and how to respond Have quick access to the life-saving medication naloxone (Narcan) that reverses an overdose Reduce the risk of a fatal overdose by not using substances while alone Governor John Bel Edwards has proclaimed May 9 as Fentanyl Awareness Day in Louisiana, to coincide with National Fentanyl Awareness Day.

Learn more information about fentanyl and substance use treatment at opioidhelpla.org.