The epidemic of fentanyl and other drugs is harming infants, both after birth and prior, often bringing deadly consequences for some and a strenuous path to recovery for those fortunate enough to survive.
In 2021 alone, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported a staggering excess of 100,000 drug overdose deaths, many of which were from the consumption of fentanyl. Experts who spoke with the Daily Caller noted that infants who face exposure to hard drugs often develop neonatal abstinence syndrome and are forced to deal with grueling consequences.
As the founder and president of Ohio’s first newborn recovery center for babies exposed to drugs in the womb explained, babies undergoing drug withdrawals often display symptoms of shaking, sneezing, and eventually sleep and eating problems.
Derek Maltz, who used to head the DEA’s Special Operations Division, told the Daily Caller that powerful drugs such as fentanyl pose an extreme risk to America’s youth and that many of them will not survive after being exposed to it.
“Fentanyl has been the most devastating drug in America’s history. Besides killing record levels of children below the age of 14, unfortunately, babies are also getting exposed to this poisonous substance,” claimed Maltz.
Cases involving neonatal abstinence syndrome have increased fivefold in the past decade, according to a study published by the National Institute of Health (NIH). It additionally notes that a diagnosis of the tragic condition is made every 25 minutes.
Recent fentanyl overdose deaths in young people include the death of an 18-month-old baby on Dec. 16 in Riverbank, California, and the passing of a 4-year-old last year in Omaha, Nebraska.
Another case from 2022 involved an 11-month-old boy who died after his mother allegedly gave him fentanyl in an effort to calm him down.
Numerous Republican politicians have placed blame on policies put in place by the Biden administration for the crisis of fentanyl flooding into the United States. Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody (R), for instance, accused Biden last year of “look[ing] the other way as Mexican drug cartels smuggle massive amounts of this deadly opioid across our southwest border.”
Meanwhile, Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), called for the U.S. government to protect Americans from fentanyl and drug cartels while also resetting “order at our border.”
Dems want to make every issue about race while they ignore the border crisis…
We want to secure the border to keep Americans AND migrants safe from cartels and deadly drug traffickers #RestoreOrderAtTheBorder #HR29 pic.twitter.com/7eRGn677Gq
— Chip Roy (@chiproytx) February 2, 2023
