Salina, Kan. — In a conversation with Salina311 on Friday at 1858 Coffee House, Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach described fentanyl as the state’s most urgent public health threat, saying the drug has become the leading cause of death for Americans under 40.
“One of our biggest initiatives within the AG’s office, and then, of course, with the KBI, who’s part of our overall office, is fentanyl,” Kobach said. “And we can’t do it without the media, because there’s multiple aspects to the war on fentanyl. One is stopping it from being trafficked into Kansas, and maybe law enforcement busts, which the KBI is doing. But another element is public awareness.”
Kobach stressed that the majority of fentanyl deaths are not among habitual drug users but among people misled by counterfeit pills. “The number one cause of death among people under the age of 40 in America is fentanyl overdose,” he said. “A huge percentage of those deaths are not habitual drug users. Those are people who purchased a pill online that they thought was Percocet or Xanax or some prescription pill… and it’s laced with fentanyl. A huge number of fentanyl deaths are from that cause.”
He recounted the story of a Kansas Bureau of Investigation officer whose son died after taking what he believed to be a safe pill. “We’re talking about a law enforcement family, not people engaged in drug use. The son takes one of these pills, thinks it’s safe, and the parents find him dead the next morning,” Kobach said.
To combat the problem, the Attorney General’s office has launched public service announcements. “The message is very simple,” Kobach said. “Don’t ever take a pill that you didn’t get from a pharmacy or from a doctor. Period. That’s it. If people lived by that message, then most of those 1,500 Kansans would be alive today.”
Kobach also announced that his office is distributing 40 naloxone boxes across the state this month. Repurposed newspaper stands, filled with the overdose-reversing drug, will be placed near college and university campuses. “Salina is going to have one. McPherson, I believe, will have one,” he said. “And it’s free. You don’t have to pay 30 bucks, which I think is the prescription cost. Anyone who wants one can grab one.”
The goal, he added, is to make the antidote as common as fire extinguishers. “I carry one in my glove box, in my truck, everywhere I go,” he said. “Everybody should have one. Ideally, if we had one in every household or every vehicle, then there would always be somebody nearby.”
Kobach said the state will continue to lean on media outlets to amplify the warnings. “We really rely on the media to help us get the message out,” he said. “These people didn’t think they were buying fentanyl.”