Missouri agencies are alerting residents to the growing presence of nitazenes, a class of synthetic opioids some of which are over five to 10 times more potent than fentanyl, increasingly detected statewide.
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, Department of Public Safety, Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and Department of Mental Health issued a joint warning as detections rise in multiple data sources, including wastewater monitoring, law enforcement surveillance and overdose investigations.
Nitazenes have been found in counterfeit pills, illicit powders, unregulated cannabis products and vape liquid, according to a March 24 news release from the state’s Department of Health and Senior Services. The opioid has been detected in 26 of 37 participating Missouri schools since January, aligning with increases in tracked emergency department reports and overdose data.
Nitazenes were connected to 14 Missouri overdose deaths in 2024, more than triple the total recorded between 2019 and 2023, according to the release. Officials said standard drug tests do not detect nitazenes, complicating identification and response efforts.
The opioid has been identified in at least 4,300 law enforcement drug seizures since 2019, spreading across North America, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime Early Warning Advisory. It was first identified in the U.S. street drug supply in late 2019 and early 2020.
In October 2025, federal bipartisan legislation was introduced aimed at “closing loopholes that traffickers exploit by making slight chemical changes to evade enforcement.”
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