More than 3,000 people who died of an overdose in the United States had xylazine in their system in 2021
Pooled incidence 1.7 and 12.1 per 100 person-years for HIV, hepatitis C, respectively, with higher risk seen in the young and in women
Federal officials warn that the drug is increasingly being mixed with fentanyl
Among the towns where this may be happening are beach resort locations, such as Playa del Carmen and Tulum
Xylazine -- used to sedate large animals such as horses and deer -- is sold on the street under the names tranq, Philly dope, and zombie drug
However, sellers and traffickers of hard drugs will still face criminal prosecution
Reduced levels of teen cannabis use and nicotine vaping seen during pandemic continued, while alcohol use returned to prepandemic level
Deaths tied to xylazine have increased significantly in recent years
New initiative would use Justice Department, Department of Veterans Affairs, and Indian Health Service to improve access to buprenorphine, methadone
Overall, deaths in Tennessee known to be linked to nitazenes rose from 10 in 2020 to 42 one year later