New Insights About Fentanyl Markets & Harm Reduction

Session Submission Type: Complete Thematic Panel

Abstract/Description

Current levels of opioid-related morbidity and mortality in the United States are staggering. Data for 2017 indicate that there were more than 47,000 opioid-involved overdose deaths, and one in eight adults now reports having had a family member or close friend die from opioids. Since 2014, the increase in opioid-related deaths is primarily associated with illicitly produced synthetic opioids (e.g., fentanyl) being mixed into heroin and counterfeit pills. Because fentanyl and other synthetic opioids are much cheaper per morphine-equivalent dose and increasingly accessible from foreign suppliers, that pattern could well spread. Given the severity of the opioid crisis, there is urgency to evaluate nontraditional tools that might reduce its impact and save lives. This panel 1) offers new insights about fentanyl markets in the US and abroad and 2) assesses evidence on and arguments made about heroin-assisted treatment and supervised consumption sites.

Sub Unit

• Area IV. Correlates of Crime / 24. Substance Use and Abuse

Division of Special Interest

• Division Session of Interest / Division of Experimental Criminology

Individual Presentations

• Why Fentanyl? Why Now? - Bryce Pardo, RAND Corporation; Beau Kilmer, RAND Corporation

• International Experiences with Fentanyl - Jirka Taylor, RAND Corporation; Peter Reuter, University of Maryland

• Evidence on the Effectiveness of Heroin-Assisted Treatment - Rosanna Smart, RAND Corporation

• Considering Supervised Consumption Sites in the U.S. - Beau Kilmer, RAND Corporation; Bryce Pardo, RAND Corporation; Jonathan Caulkins, Carnegie Mellon University

Chair

• Peter Reuter, University of Maryland

Discussant

• Robert MacCoun, Stanford University