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China: Fentanyl-Related Drugs to be Added to Controlled Substances List


FILE - Syringes filled with the opioid painkiller fentanyl are shown in an inpatient pharmacy, June 1, 2018.
FILE - Syringes filled with the opioid painkiller fentanyl are shown in an inpatient pharmacy, June 1, 2018.

China said Monday it is adding all fentanyl-related compounds to its list of controlled substances, beginning May 1.

U.S. officials have long campaigned for the move. Fentanyl, and compounds that mimic its effects, are blamed for tens of thousands of opioid overdose deaths in the U.S. each year.

"The U.S. is concerned about all variants (of fentanyl) and it's all been resolved," Liu Yuejin, the deputy director of China's National Drug Commission said Monday.

U.S. President Donald Trump said last year, if China placed controls on fentanyl, the move would be a "game changer."

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