HARRISBURG (TNS) — Xylazine, an animal tranquilizer that takes a gruesome toll on humans when added to the supply of illegal opioids, will be moved to the state’s list of controlled substances, the Pennsylvania Department of Health announced Friday.

Xylazine will become a Schedule III drug as of Saturday, the department said.

“This action will protect veterinarians and other legitimate users and manufacturers of xylazine, which is an important medication for animal sedation, while also creating penalties for people who add illicit xylazine to the drug supply that is harming people in our communities,” Dr. Debra Bogen, the state’s acting secretary of health, said in a news release.

Xylazine, also referred to as “tranq,” “tranq dope” and “zombie drug,” is approved for use on animals, but not humans.

It’s increasingly being added to the supply of what used to be mostly heroin, and which now consists largely of fentanyl, a man-made opioid.

Xylazine is extremely powerful, disabling people to an unusual extent even compared to heroin and fentanyl.

Moreover, it’s not an opioid and therefore doesn’t respond to naloxone, which is commonly used to revive people who overdose on opioids. Since it’s typically mixed with fentanyl, it’s still beneficial to give naloxone to overdose victims. But the presence of xylazine means it might take more doses of naloxone to revive someone. It also commonly takes rescue breathing and oxygen to revive someone who has used xylazine.

There’s another gruesome consequence of xylazine: It constricts tiny blood vessels which nourish skin and flesh. This can cause flesh to die, leading to horrific wounds that sometimes result in amputation.

Philadelphia was the first national hotbed of xylazine abuse, with cases first turning up around 2006.

But the problem has become much more widespread within the last several years.

Philadelphia officials said xylazine was involved in 434 fatal overdoses in 2021, up from 15 in 2015.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, xylazine was involved in 26% of Pennsylvania overdoses in 2020, up from 2% in 2015. Most if not all central Pennsylvania coroners have seen overdoses involving xylazine.

This spring, several central Pennsylvania authorities said xylazine-related wounds also have appeared in the region.

Jack Carroll, the head of drug treatment programs for Cumberland and Perry counties, said treatment providers told him “we’re starting to see significant numbers” of xylazine-related wounds.

{p class=”krtText”}Experts say drug dealers are adding xylazine as a cheap way to stretch the drug supply and boost potency.

{p class=”krtText”}Up until now, xylazine wasn’t a controlled substance. That meant drug dealers faced lesser penalties if caught with it.

{p class=”krtText”}Now, the state says “making xylazine a controlled substance will assist law enforcement agencies in bringing people to justice who illegally add xylazine to the illicit drug supply and harm others.”

{p class=”krtText”}Pennsylvania’s move to Schedule III is billed as “temporary.” It comes amid efforts within Congress and federal agencies to reschedule xylazine at the federal level and increase penalties for diverting it for illegal purposes.

{p class=”krtText”}Friday’s news release includes a statement from an official of the Pennsylvania Veterinary Medical Association: “This action will preserve a critical veterinary sedative to the benefit of animals, especially livestock, and the farmers and veterinarians who treat these animals every day. Losing this critical medication would have been devastating for livestock farmers and veterinarians and we are grateful for this solution that preserves legal access for veterinarians.”

{p class=”krtText”}©2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Visit pennlive.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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