NW Illinois News

Illinois Rep. Tony McCombie filed a bill that would allow pharmacists to sell fentanyl test strips over the counter to check for the presence of the drug or other drug adulterants in a controlled substance, as well as changing the language of the Drug Paraphernalia Control Act.

“This bill will help save lives," McCombie said March 16 in a release on her website. "Fentanyl is a deadly drug that is taking far too many lives and as we continue to take steps to address the opioid epidemic affecting Illinois families, our priority with this legislation is to single out fentanyl.”

McCombie filed House Bill 3203 on Feb. 16, which would permit pharmacists to sell test strips to the public to test for fentanyl or similar substances within other drugs. County health departments would be able to distribute the test strips at no charge, and the bill would change the Drug Paraphernalia Control Act to alter the definition of "drug paraphernalia to NOT include equipment, products or materials to analyze or test for the presence of fentanyl, a fentanyl analogue or a drug adulterant within a controlled substance," according to the bill's text.

In January, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) announced that it had seized more than 18.3 million doses of fentanyl in Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin in 2022. The DEA's Chicago Division announced the seizure of 804,551 fentanyl-laced, fake prescription pills and more than 549 pounds of fentanyl powder last year, according to a release from the DEA. The DEA Laboratory estimated that these seizures represent more than 18.3 million potentially deadly doses of fentanyl, the release stated.

"The staggering amount of fentanyl seized by DEA agents throughout Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin makes up a fraction of the 50.6 million fentanyl-laced, fake prescription pills and over 10,000 pounds of fentanyl powder seized by the DEA throughout the United States last year. The DEA Laboratory estimates that these seizures represent over 379 million potentially deadly doses of fentanyl,” the release stated.

“As lawmakers, when we see a problem as deep as this one, it’s our public duty to try to solve it and I believe my bill is a viable first step forward in combatting this epidemic,” McCombie said.

McCombie, a lifelong resident of Savanna, was elected to represent the 71st District in 2016, having earned a bachelor degree from Western Illinois University. She owns and operates Blue Appraisals and is a real estate broker with MelFoster Company. She was previously a member of the Savanna City Council and mayor of Savanna.