Open Letter to President Biden ahead of meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on China's role in America's fentanyl crisis.

November 15, 2023

Dear President Biden:

Against the backdrop of the ongoing war in Ukraine, the escalating war in the Middle East, and rising geopolitical tensions, your meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping could not come at a more important time.

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has increasingly sought to expand its influence and assert its dominance around the globe. Too often, this is coming at the expense of Americans and American life. Chinese exports of fentanyl and the ingredients to make fentanyl are a glaring example.

The toll the fentanyl crisis is taking on American families is unconscionable. Nearly two-thirds of the 110,000 synthetic opioid overdose deaths last year in our country were a result of fentanyl poisoning. Perhaps most troubling, many of these deaths were accidental, meaning the victim did not know the prescription or recreational drug they were using was laced with fentanyl. China is the number one source of fentanyl in the U.S., often smuggled into the country by Mexican drug cartels. Not uncoincidentally, China is also the largest source of illegal disposable e-cigarettes, another potential delivery system for this dangerous drug. What is even more concerning is that these illegal products come in sweet flavors that attract youth, as a family in Georgia that nearly lost their 13-year-old son knows all too well.

As a mother, a former member of Congress, and longtime advocate on these issues, I am encouraged by the press accounts of the proposed agreement between the U.S. and China to crack down on the Chinese chemical manufacturers who make and export fentanyl ingredients aimed at killing Americans. While this is a positive sign, I urge you to take more aggressive action to hold China accountable for its role in poisoning millions of Americans since the opioid crisis began.

America should be thoroughly inspecting every Chinese import into the U.S. for fentanyl. We should be stepping up enforcement against imports of illegal products, like disposable e-cigarettes, that can deliver fentanyl to unsuspecting Americans. And we should be clear that very real consequences exist should the Chinese fail to uphold their end of the deal, yet again.

Solving America’s fentanyl crisis requires a comprehensive approach. It must include commonsense policies that crack down on the source of fentanyl, dismantle supply routes, prevent the import of potential delivery mechanisms, and expand access to overdose reversal agents to help save lives.

These discussions with President Xi are important steps, but actions speak louder than words. When it comes to addressing the increasingly devastating cost of America’s fentanyl crisis, more action is needed. Quite literally, American lives hang in the balance.

Sincerely,
Hon. Mary Bono
Chairwoman, Communities United for Smart Policy

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