In Cortland stop, Schumer outlines plan to combat the drug Xylazine

CORTLAND, N.Y. — U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D–N.Y.) on Friday (March 10) revealed his three-pronged plan to combat the rise in the drug Xylazine.

Xylazine is described as a deadly, “skin-rotting zombie drug,” also known as ‘Tranq,’ that is fueling a new wave of overdoses and deaths in Cortland and Onondaga counties and across Central New York.

Standing with local law enforcement and health leaders, Schumer explained that upstate communities cannot fight the “scourge of this dangerous drug on streets alone” and is calling for a “major boost” in federal support to combat drug trafficking and this “public health crisis.”

First, Schumer said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) needs to “accelerate” its operations to track down illicit sources of Xylazine that are “plaguing” the Northeast, and upstate New York in particular, to cut off supply that is flooding New York streets. Second, the senator detailed his new push to “supercharge” the federal COPS Hiring Program with nearly $537 million in new funds to help “stop drug trafficking in its tracks.”

Third, Schumer said “we need an all of the above” approach to treat the overdose crisis, and said he is calling for new increases to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) appropriations, including grants that can be used to fund testing infrastructure for Xylazine.

“Upstate New York is seeing a dramatic rise in Xylazine, a horrific skin rotting zombie drug, plaguing our streets, overwhelming law enforcement and causing serious concern because it is Narcan resistant, putting lives at greater risk. The feds need to accelerate their efforts to crack down on this drug illegally being shipped from overseas and unlawfully making its way onto the streets of Syracuse, Cortland County and communities across New York,” Schumer said.

Cortland County Sheriff Mark Helms thanked the lawmaker for helping to raise awareness about the deadly drug.

“I don’t think people realize quite how dangerous this drug is,” Helms said in the Schumer release. “Small communities like Cortland are often the last place the public expects to see a new drug take hold. Most of the public has never even heard of Xylazine, but it’s important that they know it’s already here.”