The Drug Enforcement Administration has temporarily classified seven synthetic opioids as Schedule I substances under the Controlled Substances Act.
Schedule I drugs are defined as having no accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. The synthetic opioids, known as benzimidazole-opioids or “nitazenes,” have been linked to a growing number of overdose deaths across the United States.
As Emily’s Hope previously reported, the DEA recorded just 18 reports of nitazenes between 1999 and 2004, and then none for the next 15 years. But since 2019, more than 7,000 cases have been identified, involving drugs that can be 10 to 40 times more potent than fentanyl.
Between August 2020 and July 2024, the DEA temporarily controlled 10 of these compounds because of the threat they pose to public safety. Now, with even more nitazene variants appearing on the street, the agency has added seven more to the list: ethyleneoxynitazene, methylenedioxynitazene, 5-methyl etodesnitazene, N-desethyl etonitazene, N-desethyl protonitazene, N,N-dimethylamino etonitazene, and N-pyrrolidino isotonitazene.
Law enforcement officers have found these substances in powder and tablet form, often mixed with other illicit drugs.
The temporary scheduling will last two years, with the option to extend for one additional year while the DEA works toward a permanent classification.
Other examples of Schedule I drugs include heroin, LSD, marijuana, ecstasy, methaqualone, and peyote.
