FDA cracks down on ‘tranq’ imports due to new drug trend

The Food and Drug Administration is beefing up efforts to ensure that xylazine, an animal sedative known as “tranq,” is not diverted to the illicit drug supply.

The FDA said under a new import alert, shipments of xylazine ingredients and finished doses will be subject to increased scrutiny. Agency staff will be empowered to detain shipments if they appear to violate the law.

Personnel will be checking to make sure xylazine is properly labeled, unadulterated and destined for legitimate veterinary use in large animals such as deer and horses.

Drug users are increasingly adding xylazine to opioid drugs to extend the euphoria they get from a high. However, the drug is causing nasty skin abscesses and ulcers, sometimes resulting in amputations.

Officials from San Francisco to the Northeast have sounded the alarm about tranq, and the White House drug czar is considering whether to label tranq as an emerging threat, a major step that could increase awareness and speed treatments.

“The FDA remains concerned about the increasing prevalence of xylazine mixed with illicit drugs, and this action is one part of broader efforts the agency is undertaking to address this issue,” FDA Commissioner Robert M. Califf said this week. “We will continue to use all tools at our disposal and partner with the Drug Enforcement Administration and other federal, state, local agencies and stakeholders as appropriate to stem these illicit activities and protect public health.”

The FDA said xylazine will still be available to state-licensed compounding pharmacies for legitimate use in animals.

The agency is cracking down as the U.S. contends with a drug-overdose crisis that kills more than 100,000 people per year.

Synthetic opioids, notably fentanyl, are driving the deaths. Mexican cartels are using Chinese chemicals to make fentanyl in clandestine labs before traffickers bring them into U.S. communities, often in the form of counterfeit pills.

While tranq is often added to opioid drugs, the sedative is not in the opioid family, so it does not respond to overdose-reversing drugs like naloxone. That makes the problem even more complex.