{"id":2643,"date":"2025-04-25T19:38:10","date_gmt":"2025-04-25T19:38:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tcysapc.org\/?p=2643"},"modified":"2025-04-25T19:38:10","modified_gmt":"2025-04-25T19:38:10","slug":"texas-house-unanimously-gives-initial-approve-to-bill-that-would-legalize-fentanyl-testing-strips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tcysapc.org\/?p=2643","title":{"rendered":"Texas House unanimously gives initial approve to bill that would legalize fentanyl testing strips"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"Amazon.com:The Texas House has given unanimous initial approval<\/a> to a bill to legalize fentanyl testing strips. Currently, state law classifies the strips as drug paraphernalia.\u00a0\u00a0 On Tuesday, state lawmakers passed House Bill 1644 on second reading by a vote of 145 to 0. It would legalize testing strips for fentanyl and Xylazine, also known as \u201ctranq,” a veterinary tranquilizer often mixed into illicit drugs.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cYou can purchase these strips 30 to a box for $30 online on Amazon,\u201d said State Rep. Tom Oliverson (R-Cypress), the author of HB 1644. \u201cThey\u2019re available in most states.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Fentanyl poisoning has killed more than 7,000 Texans since 2019. Most victims have no idea they\u2019re taking the synthetic opioid, which is often blended into pills that look identical to medications like Xanax and Adderall. Oliverson emphasized that legalizing these strips would not be an endorsement of drug legalization or usage.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The House passed a similar bill in 2023 and Gov. Greg Abbott publicly supported the idea, but the measure never passed the Senate.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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During a press conference on Monday highlighting a 36% drop in fentanyl-induced deaths in Travis County in 2024<\/a>, elected officials and advocates said testing strips are key to saving more lives going forward.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cWe\u2019d love to see fentanyl test strips legalized at the state and federal level,\u201d Travis County Judge Andy Brown said. \u201cThese fentanyl strips are so important for people to have access to know what they\u2019re going to put in their body,\u201d said Maggie Luna, the executive director of Texas Harm Reduction Alliance. HB 1644 needs one more vote in the House on a third reading, which is typically a formality, before it heads to the Senate.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Texas House has given unanimous initial approval to a bill to legalize fentanyl testing strips. Currently, state law classifies the strips as drug paraphernalia.\u00a0\u00a0 On Tuesday, state lawmakers passed House Bill 1644 on second reading by a vote of … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2643","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t