Counterfeit Pills Contribute to the Fentanyl Deaths of Young People

(NPR) Drug overdose deaths among teens and young adults have nearly doubled since 2019. There's concern that counterfeit pills, laced with fentanyl, sold via social media sites, are partly to blame.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

Social media networks say they're cracking down on drug trafficking on their sites. As Martha Bebinger from member station WBUR reports, pills that look like prescription drugs but are actually laced with fentanyl are killing teens and young adults.

MARTHA BEBINGER, BYLINE: On May 1, Sam Cioffi headed out to celebrate. He'd just set a record at Salem State University, outside Boston, for the most lacrosse goals scored in one season. The next morning, Sam was dead. Here's what his mother, Sally Cioffi, has pieced together.

Listen here.