The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration is alerting the public of a sharp nationwide increase in the lethality of fentanyl-laced fake prescription pills.

A veterinary tranquilizer called xylazine is infiltrating street drugs, deepening addiction, baffling law enforcement and causing wounds so severe that some result in amputation.

The Shapiro Administration is reminding Pennsylvanians about the multiple ways to access the life-saving opioid reversal medication, naloxone, as nearly 23,000 opioid overdose reversals have been made with naloxone purchased through one of the state’s programs since 2017.

The nasal spray reverses opioid overdoses and public health officials hope that making it more widely available could save lives and reduce the nation’s high rates of drug fatalities.

For this episode of The El-Chaar Chronicles, Karen El-Chaar welcomes Northampton County Executive Lamont McClure and Kathleen Jiorle, Northampton County Drug and Alcohol Administrator to talk about the new Fake Is Real campaign, which aims to raise awareness about fentanyl-laced and counterfeit prescription pills.

We all die. Northampton County Exec Lamont McClure admitted yesterday that even he is a mere mortal. He wondered whether, after it’s all over and he reaches the Pearly Gates, they’ll let him in…