Pills laced with fentanyl and meth found in Mexican Pharmacies

Via News 3 LV –
by Steve WolfordThu, February 9th 2023, 7:42 PM CST

Opioid expert warns of Mexican pharmacies

LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — According to an expert on addiction and rehabilitation, a recent investigative report by the L.A. Times is reason for concern. The Times report revealed a significant number of pharmacies in northwestern Mexico were selling prescriptions, represented as legitimate, when in reality were counterfeit painkillers containing fentanyl.

A big reason, says Steve Carleton, chief clinical officer with Gallus Detox Centers, is the epicenter of fentanyl production has moved.

“We know that now in Mexico, they are producing their own fentanyl,” Carleton said. “Historically, most of the fentanyl production, we believe was happening in China, and now the cartels have taken over fentanyl production in their own labs in Mexico and that is now leading to them producing this drug for the pharmaceuticals they sell in pharmacies in Mexico.”

Carleton says this revelation by the L.A. Times poses a risk for any American who decides to visit the wrong Mexican pharmacy because of an opioid addiction. “If people are going across the border and going into Mexican pharmacies and they’re buying painkillers, a lot of those painkillers are being cut with fentanyl. So it is not oxy or Percocet or Vicodin. They’re oftentimes now they were finding they’re laced with fentanyl.”

Carleton says counterfeit Adderall is also being sold. “Adderall medications that people are buying at these over-the-counter pharmacies in Mexico are being laced with methamphetamine,” he said. And, in the face of a five-month-long shortage of Adderall which the F.D.A. blames on a manufacturing shortfall, a pharmacy south of the border is becoming a more popular option for many who require it for ADHD.

“I think people that struggle with substance use disorders and addictions, when they travel to Mexico, they know that they can buy these medications from pharmacies without prescriptions,” said Carleton. “And so it is a really common thing that happens.”

While it might be difficult to determine how much of the counterfeit pills are being sold as legitimate in some of those Mexican pharmacies, the L.A. Times investigation revealed that 71% of the 17 pills tested were positive for fentanyl or meth contamination

Origin (with Video): https://news3lv.com/news/local/opioid-expert-warns-of-mexican-pharmacies