The US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has announced that it has seized over 50.6 million fentanyl-laced, fake prescription pills and more than 10,000 pounds of fentanyl powder in 2022.

The DEA Laboratory estimates that these seizures represent more than 379 million potentially deadly doses.

“In the past year, the men and women of the DEA have relentlessly worked to seize over 379 million deadly doses of fentanyl from communities across the country,” said Administrator Anne Milgram.

In 2021, the DEA issued a Public Safety Alert on the widespread drug trafficking of fentanyl in the form of laced, fake prescription pills. These pills are made to look identical to real prescription medications — including OxyContin, Percocet and Xanax.

DEA laboratory testing in 2022 revealed that six out of ten laced, fake prescription pills contained a potentially lethal dose of fentanyl. This is an increase from DEA’s announcement in 2021 that four out of ten laced, fake prescription pills contain a potentially deadly dose.

In 2022, DEA seized more than double the amount of laced, fake prescription pills that it seized in 2021. DEA also seized nearly 131,000 pounds of methamphetamine, more than 4,300 pounds of heroin and over 444,000 pounds of cocaine.