Succeeding Where Trump Failed: The Biden-Harris Administration's Work to Combat the Fentanyl Epidemic

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The opioid overdose epidemic has devastated American families and communities across the country. Fueled by the increased availability of fentanyl, a highly addictive synthetic opioid, three in ten Americans report that they or someone in their family have at one time been addicted to opioids. It should come as no surprise, therefore, that voters have listed preventing fentanyl from entering the United States as a top priority.

Tackling the epidemic by cracking down on fentanyl trafficking and strengthening public health infrastructure is a key part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s unity agenda. This whole-of-government approach to addressing the crisis involves investing in evidence-based solutions to save lives, pursuing dogged diplomatic engagement with China, tightening border security, and bolstering law enforcement.

While the overdose death rate increased rapidly from 2019 to 2021, the United States has stopped further growth. As of August 2023, the CDC reported 13 months straight of leveling off of overdose deaths.

In contrast, Trump’s erratic, ineffective policies allowed opioid-related overdose deaths to skyrocket, leaving yet another mess for the Biden-Harris Administration to clean up. The fentanyl crisis is just one more reason the United States cannot afford another Trump presidency.

Here is a side-by-side comparison of how the two leaders addressed this crisis:

INVESTING IN EVIDENCE-BASED SOLUTIONS TO SAVE LIVES

The Biden-Harris Administration Has Made Saving Lives and Stopping Overdoses due to Opioids a Central Part of Their Bipartisan  Agenda

  • Effectively responding to America’s opioid epidemic requires concrete action both at home and abroad. The administration issued the nation’s first national plan to prioritize harm reduction – with its focus on preventing death and illness in drug users while offering them care and treatment, which has proven effective.

  • Biden and Harris have worked tirelessly to strengthen our health care systems, including through significant investments in community health centers that treat Americans who are suffering from addiction. The Biden-Harris Administration awarded $225 million in funds across the nation to train over 13,000 community health workers.

  • The administration took action to allow states to use Medicaid funds to provide health care services to incarcerated individuals – including treatment for the estimated 65% of imprisoned people with substance use disorders – which has been proven to decrease overdose deaths and reduce crime. This, combined with unprecedented steps to make prescribing proven addiction treatments part of routine health care delivery and the passage of legislation that removes obstacles to care, has helped ensure that Americans everywhere can access the care they need.

While in Office, Trump Did Not Have a Plan to Address the Fentanyl Crisis and Tried to Slash the Budget for Drug Addiction Efforts

  • The Trump Administration never had a plan to address the increase in fentanyl overdoses. While Trump was in office, the Government Accountability Office issued a report blasting his Administration for failing to come up with a coherent national opioid strategy as required by law.

  • The Trump Administration budget included dramatic cuts in funding for the office dedicated to addressing American drug addiction. His White House issued a budget slashed funding for the ONDCP by 95 percent.

ENGAGING IN CRITICAL DIPLOMACY WITH CHINA TO STOP FENTANYL AT ITS SOURCE

The Biden-Harris Administration Reached a Significant Agreement with Chinese President Xi on Fentanyl and Its Precursors – Directly Addressing One of American Voters’ Top Concerns

  • The vast majority of precursor materials for fentanyl are produced in China and shipped to labs in Central and North America – where criminals produce the deadly and addictive drug for distribution in the United States. As a result of the administration's agreement, China issued a notice to domestic manufacturers that it would begin enforcing laws that restrict the production and shipment of such chemicals.

  • Following the announcement, some China-based pharmaceutical companies ceased operations and had their payments to international accounts blocked;  experts say this will lead to an important reduction of fentanyl shipments to the United States.

  • China also resumed submitting reports to the international narcotics enforcement database for the first time in years. The database, which shares real-time information about suspicious shipments and suspected traffickers, helps global law enforcement agencies disrupt drug trafficking. 

Trump Worsened Tensions with China And Undermined Opportunities to Cooperate on Slowing Fentanyl Production

  • In contrast, Trump was ineffective at diplomacy. Rather than holding China’s feet to the fire, he praised the autocratic tendencies of the Chinese leadership. Later, when his personal dealmaking failed, he turned instead to hostile rhetoric that achieved nothing, including on fentanyl – but served to heighten tensions and increase the risk of conflict.

TIGHTENING BORDER SECURITY AND BOLSTERING LAW ENFORCEMENt

Biden and Harris Working to Tighten Borders and Bolster Law Enforcement

  • Law Enforcement: The Biden-Harris Administration has made significant investments in law enforcement efforts to address illicit fentanyl trafficking and enabled historic seizures of illicit fentanyl along the border with Mexico. Further, the administration’s national security supplemental funding request includes more than $1.2 billion to stop the flow of illicit fentanyl into American communities, which would provide for the hiring of an additional 1,300 border patrol agents.

  • Border Security: The Biden-Harris Administration  has also championed tough reforms to secure the border, directing his team to negotiate with a bipartisan group of senators to develop legislation that would address the border crisis. Yet Republican leaders in both the Senate and House caved to Trump’s demands to avoid giving Democrats  a political victory, killing a bipartisan bill that would have resulted in the toughest set of border security reforms in decades.

  • Technology Investments: The Biden-Harris Administration's FY24 budget included hundreds of millions of dollars to improve the screening of vehicles and cargo entering the United States, which enables Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers to more quickly and effectively ensure secure travel and trade at ports of entry.

  • Targeting the Supply Chain: The administration  rallied international partners to disrupt illicit supply chains, disrupt trafficking, address illicit finance, and respond to public safety and public health impacts.

  • Sanctions: The administration has also focused on shutting down drug traffickers' funds by issuing sanctions that prevent them from accessing U.S. financial systems.

Meanwhile, Opioid Deaths Soared during the Trump Administration, while Patchwork Diplomacy and an Obsession with “the Wall” Hampered Efforts to Secure Our Borders

  • Synthetic opioid overdose deaths rose by 192 percent during Trump’s presidency, including an alarming 51 percent jump in fentanyl-related deaths between 2019 and 2020. Data show that his Administration’s policies accelerated drug traffickers’ shift to fentanyl.

  • Trump campaigned heavily on promises to “build the wall” but once in office, his plan proved to be as foolish as it was xenophobic. Customs and Border Protection data indicates that the majority of illicit drug substances are smuggled into the United States through legitimate ports of entry rather than through illegal border crossings – rendering Trump’s obsession with his border wall deeply ineffective.

Published: February 2024

Updated: July 2024