Maryland’s top lawyer is joining a list of 39 state attorneys general in advocating Congress to crack down on the drug xylazine, which is showing up in illicit drugs and contributing to a spike in overdoses and other health issues.
Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown signed onto a letter asking Congress to pass the Combating Illicit Xylazine Act, which has been introduced in both houses.
The bill would classify xylazine as a controlled substance and allows the Drug Enforcement Agency to track the manufacture and sale of the drug.
Xylazine is currently legal and used as a tranquilizer for horses. However, the DEA has seen it mixed with fentanyl and other drugs. It is used to increase the effects of those drugs.
The drug is commonly referred to as Tranq and is known for causing flesh wounds at the injection site. Treatments like naloxone will not work with Tranq because it is not an opioid.
