Oshkosh-area drug overdose deaths linked to counterfeit pills containing fentanyl, officials warn in emergency public service announcement
OSHKOSH – After a spike in overdose deaths attributed to counterfeit pills, the Winnebago County Medical Examiner’s Office and Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office issued an “emergency public service announcement” last week.
In the announcement, officials said at least 12 of the 15 overdose deaths in Winnebago County so far in 2023 have been attributed to fentanyl while another seven pending cases are also suspected to be attributed to fentanyl.
They also added there has been a spike in overdoses where counterfeit pills have been associated with the deaths, many of whom have been younger people.
Counterfeit pills are fake medications that have different ingredients than the actual medication. They may contain no active ingredient, the wrong active ingredient or have the right ingredient but in an incorrect quantity, the release said.
Counterfeit pills may contain lethal amounts of fentanyl or methamphetamine and are extremely dangerous because they often appear identical to legitimate prescription pills, and the user is likely unaware of how lethal they can be, the release said.
Specifically in the Winnebago County area, officials said they are seeing oxycodone 30mg pills (referred to as “M30s”) that are testing positive for fentanyl and are lethal.
“With the wide availability of opioid antagonists (like Narcan), there have likely been dozens, or perhaps hundreds of additional overdose events that could have been deaths associated with these counterfeit pills,” the release added.
Where to get help in Winnebago County
Narcan, LifePoint (a syringe services program) and Fentanyl Test Strips are available for free at the Winnebago County Health Department's Oshkosh location, 112 Otter Ave., second floor, 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Mondays-Fridays.
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance use, contact the national overdose prevention lifeline at 800-484-3731 or online at neverusealone.com, or call 211 or text your ZIP code to 898211 to get connected to resources in your area.
This article originally appeared on Oshkosh Northwestern: Oshkosh drug overdose deaths linked to fake oxycodone pills, fentanyl
