Congress passes extension of opioid enforcement tool

Congress has voted to temporarily extend a sweeping tool that has helped federal agents crack down on drugs chemically similar to fentanyl

WASHINGTON -- Congress has voted to temporarily extend a sweeping tool that has helped federal agents crack down on drugs chemically similar to fentanyl. The Senate on Thursday approved legislation extending until October an order that allows the federal government to classify so-called fentanyl analogues as Schedule I controlled substances. The drugs are generally foreign-made with a very close chemical makeup to the dangerous opioid. The authority was set to expire next week. Some feared that letting the authorization lapse could have led to a surge in opioid deaths. The Justice Department during President Donald Trump’s administration lobbied to make the ban permanent, putting fentanyl analogues in the same legal category as heroin and cocaine forever.