What Is Carfentanil? Elephant Tranquilizer Behind Rising U.S. Deaths
Summary
Carfentanil is an extremely powerful drug causing a sharp rise in overdose deaths in the U.S. It is about 100 times stronger than fentanyl and is often mixed with other drugs without users knowing. This drug is very hard to treat in overdoses and has rapidly spread across many states.Key Facts
- Carfentanil is 100 times stronger than fentanyl and 10,000 times stronger than morphine.
- A lethal dose of fentanyl is about 2 milligrams; for carfentanil, it is only 0.2 milligrams.
- Overdose deaths involving carfentanil rose from 29 in the first half of 2023 to 238 in the same period in 2024.
- Carfentanil is sometimes called an "elephant tranquilizer" because it is used for large animals in veterinary medicine.
- The drug has been found in 37 U.S. states as of May 2025.
- Carfentanil is frequently mixed with other drugs or made into pills that look like prescription painkillers.
- Naloxone, the common antidote for opioid overdose, may not always work against carfentanil, even in high doses.
- China regulated carfentanil in 2017, but it continues to re-enter the U.S. drug supply due to shifts in illegal drug markets.
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