State Police Warn that Powerful Painkiller is Being Packaged as Heroin

NEWPORT — The Vermont State Police issued a warning on Wednesday that fentanyl is being packaged and sold as heroin across the state.

Fentanyl is a painkiller that is used intravenously to treat pain, usually only at hospitals. It is much more powerful than morphine.

In a press release the police are saying that they are currently trying to develop information about the packaging source and distribution of the drug which is being sold as heroin.

The Vermont State Police remind Vermonters that injecting Fentanyl, or any drug not prescribed by a medical practitioner, can be lethal and will most likely lead to overdose and or death.

ABC News reports that heroin laced with the powerful painkiller is suspected in at least 50 recent fatal overdoes in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Maryland.