Hub City father asks, ‘Why are Fentanyl testing strips illegal?”

PINE BELT, Miss. (WDAM) - WDAM reported yesterday on a Hattiesburg business owner and father willing to break the law to give out Fentanyl testing strips. But why is this illegal?

Overdose awareness advocate James Moore knows that it’s illegal to possess Fentanyl testing strips. Still, he’s giving them out anyway to prevent fentanyl-related overdoses like the one that killed his son.

“People are dying weekly, if not more often, in our state, and I’m ready to pass these out rather than wait for the law to change,” said Moore.

He said he wants to see these strips be legalized because they help keep struggling drug users from accidentally overdosing on a laced drug.

“Normal fentanyl is 80 to 100 times more potent than morphine,” said Sgt. Jake Driskell with the Jones County Sheriff’s Department. “Carfentanyl is 10,000 times more potent than morphine, so it’s very deadly.”

So why do these tiny strips remain illegal?

According to State Senator Joey Fillingane, it stems from a state law written back in the 1970s.

“In the statutes, we have a pretty broad definition (of paraphernalia) that covers everything from any kind of implements or equipment used to grow, to test, analyze or package any sort of a drug,” said Fillingane.

There have been efforts to remove the testing strips from the illegal paraphernalia list, but those efforts have all fallen short.

Some lawmakers said they do not want to pass a law that is perceived as promoting drugs.

“You could argue that, basically, the only reason you would use these strips is knowingly taking illegal drugs,” said Fillingane. “So, do you really want to encourage people to go out there and take illegal drugs?”

Others, however, feel that legalizing test strips will not encourage new users.

“If Fentanyl testing strips are sanctioned, if they are legal, will more people go out and say, ‘Now I’m going to go use drugs?’” asked Brett Montague, CEO of End It For Good. “That will not happen.”

Regardless of anyone’s stance on the issue, the battle against drugs continues across Mississippi.

Mississippi Senate Bill 22-84 was recently proposed to get Fentanyl testing strips off the illegal paraphernalia list, but it died in committee in February of this year.

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