Gov. Ron DeSantis highlighted the progress of Florida's crackdown on illicit fentanyl during a news conference in Orlando on Monday. The powerful opioid caused over 48,000 American deaths in 2024, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), including many here in the state.
"I don't think there's anybody in Florida that has not been impacted in one way or another," DeSantis said. "Maybe not you, maybe not your immediate family, but you know a co-worker who has lost a family member, or you know a neighbor, or you know somebody, maybe in your extended family. This has something that's been really significant."
DeSantis, recognizing its effects, spoke on Florida's efforts to eradicate the deadly drug from local communities around members of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE).
"We have done our C.O.R.E [Coordinated Opioid Recovery] program, which is kind of a full-spectrum response to opioid addiction and opioid overdoses," DeSantis said. "This is a full spectrum, once you get out of the hospital, still having support, and also being able to be put on a regimen if they need to be, so they're not going back to that."
The governor also mentioned several emergency measures launched in 2021 to help mitigate fentanyl released at the southern border, where more than 11,000 pounds were seized during the 2021 fiscal year, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data.
In addition to land operations, DeSantis mentioned Florida's marine support to combat fentanyl and other drugs under Operation Vigilant Sentry.
According to the governor, Vigilant Sentry has interdicted 19,000 illegal aliens in the state, of which nearly 18,000 were repatriated to their home country. A total of 470 vessels were also captured, largely holding narcotics and contraband, DeSantis noted.
Furthermore, DeSantis noted Florida's State Assistance for Fentanyl Eradication (S.A.F.E.) program, which allocates funding to local law enforcement officials to conduct large-scale drug interdiction operations across the state. DeSantis said the 2023 program allows law enforcement to fight against drug trafficking and remove hundreds of pounds of drugs from the street.
As a result, the governor noted that the program's 200 investigations have led to 2,100 arrests, 485 pounds of fentanyl seized, and the removal of 63,000 fentanyl pills. DeSantis also emphasized that the removed fentanyl could have killed one-third of Americans.
"We gotta throw the book at the people who are spewing this poison to our communities," DeSants said.
