UCLA researchers find fentanyl, meth and heroin in counterfeit meds sold in Mexico
by: Salvador Rivera
Posted: Feb 8, 2023 / 06:05 PM CST
Updated: Feb 8, 2023 / 06:05 PM CST
SAN DIEGO (Border Report) — Researchers from the University of California Los Angeles say they have evidence showing some counterfeit medications sold in south-of-the-border pharmacies contain deadly drugs such as fentanyl, methamphetamine and heroin.
Between 2021 and 2022, UCLA researchers obtained 45 single pills that were sold without prescriptions at Mexican pharmacies that “cater to U.S. tourists.”
According to their research, the pills were distributed as “oxycodone”, “Xanax” and “Adderall”
“The samples we tested came from 40 different pharmacies in four cities in Mexico,” said Dr. Chelsea Shover, one of the researchers. “It’s important to know all the samples we tested were sold as individual pills.”
Shover stated about half of the pills tested came back positive for illegal substances.
Dr. Chelsea Shover is a researcher with UCLA’s School of Medicine. (Courtesy: UCLA)
“There are counterfeit opioid pills being sold as oxycodone or else but actually contain fentanyl,” she said.
Shover told Border Report they took on the study after hearing from fellow researchers south of the border about counterfeit
https://www.borderreport.com/news/health/ucla-researchers-find-fentanyl-meth-and-heroin-in-counterfeit-meds-sold-in-mexico/
