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FDA chief wants more mail inspectors to stem opioid influx

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 The head of the Food and Drug Administration wants to more than double the number of packages his agency inspects for illicit drugs, an effort to stem a deadly flow of opioids that increasingly runs through the international mail supply.

FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said Monday he needs more staffers to intercept opioids that are being disguised as other drugs and supplements.

"We're finding an increasing number of opioids coming in through those facilities," said Gottlieb, in an interview with The Associated Press. "In some ways the FDA is the last line of defense."

At a time of massive growth in shipments of packages from China as a result of e-commerce, the FDA, the U.S. Postal service and other government agencies are struggling to intercept shipments of opioids such as fentanyl to U.S. buyers.

International shipments processed by the postal service nearly doubled in just three years, to 275 million in fiscal year 2016 from 150 million in 2013, according to federal records.


Source :- abcnews
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