The opioid crisis in the United States began in the late 1990s as a result of extensive overuse of physician-prescribed medications.

This full-on epidemic is still raging today and has since evolved to include abuse of synthetic opioids (like fentanyl), obtained both through medical prescription and by illicit means.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which was recognized for Excellence in the 2020 ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security Awards Program, over a 6-year period between 2013 and 2019, synthetic opioid-involved deaths in the U.S. increased by 1,040% from 1.0 to 11.4 individuals per 100,000.

While the relationship between drug overdoses and the COVID-19 pandemic requires further investigation, these devastating statistics, paired with provisional data and other emerging research suggest that the pandemic has only exacerbated the opioid crisis.

(The number of drug overdose deaths in the U.S. hit a grim record, as the nation simultaneously battled the Covid-19 pandemic. A total of 93,331 Americans died of a drug overdose in 2020, and that represents nearly a 30% increase from the year before, according to preliminary data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Courtesy of CNBC News and YouTube. Posted on Jul 14, 2021.)

Another critical consequence of the widespread prevalence of synthetic opioids is the alarming frequency with which first responders, including emergency medical and law enforcement personnel at all levels, encounter them.

Unknown or unexpected contact with a synthetic opioid such as fentanyl or a related compound presents a safety hazard for first responders if they are not prepared with the proper protective equipment (PPE).

Reliable detection is one way the DHS Science and Technology Directorate (S&T), a Multiple Award Finalist in the 2021 ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security Awards Program, is working to protect the nation’s first responders as they deal with the crisis on the front lines, and standards play a key role in ensuring the integrity of such vital detection equipment.

(Anne Milgram, administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration, recently launched “One Pill Can Kill” campaign to warn about illegal synthetic pills sold online as prescription drugs. “It’s Russian roulette,” she says. Courtesy of TODAY and YouTube. Posted on Sep 27, 2021.)

To protect frontline responders, DHS S&T has provided us with some breaking news.

In July, ASTM International, one of the largest standards development organizations in the world, published three new standards for the field detection of fentanyl and fentanyl-related compounds.

S&T is proud to have funded and provided subject matter expertise for the development of all three standards and participated in the drafting and balloting of each of the three documents:

• ASTM E3243-21 Standard Specification for Field Detection Equipment and Assays Used for Fentanyl and Fentanyl-Related Compounds;

• ASTM E3289-21 Standard Guide for Using Equipment and Assays for Field Detection of Fentanyl and Fentanyl-Related Compounds; and

• ASTM E3290-21 Standard Test Method for Establishing Performance of Equipment and Assays for Field Detection of Fentanyl-Related Compounds.

While the new standards are similar in title and they do reference each other, they are three distinct standards.

Standard specification ASTM E3243-21 provides system designers, manufacturers, integrators, procurement personnel, end-users, practitioners, and responsible authorities a common set of parameters to match the capabilities of chemical detection tools with user needs for their specific application.

Standard guide ASTM E3289-21 provides the end-user—those detecting these illicit and dangerous compounds in the field—with information on the optimal use as well as critical limitations of detection equipment.

Finally, standard test method ASTM 3290-21 details different methods for the testing of field detection equipment in a lab setting, specifically sample preparation, analysis protocols, and procedures to use when examining equipment performance.

“The development of fentanyl detection standards was a critical first step on the path to providing our first responders with more robust detection capabilities that will better inform and protect them from hazardous substances they encounter in the field,” says Dr. Rosanna Anderson, who leads S&T’s Opioid/Fentanyl Detection program.

The newly published standards will be put into effect almost immediately through a S&T-led research and development effort with PNNL.

The standards will be used to support collection of reference spectra to build out instrument libraries with approximately 50 Drug Enforcement Agency controlled substances including fentanyl, fentanyl analogues, and other emerging synthetic drugs.

A follow-on test and evaluation event to assess the upgraded instrumentation will follow the procedures outlined in standard test method ASTM 3290-21.

With the participation of 15 commercial vendors, submitting 20 different field-portable opioid detection systems, this will result in a comprehensive reference library that will be provided to first responders who currently use these instruments at no cost and as a publicly accessible report on the performance assessment results.

The ability of first responders to identify fentanyl, its analogs, and other synthetics drugs using reliable equipment, verified through standardized methods, and access a reference library that catalogs the data in one place will enable them to effectively plan and conduct operations while simultaneously increasing responder safety.

“This project is truly a win-win for first responders and manufacturers of field chemical detection equipment,” said Rich Ozanich, the lead researcher at PNNL who developed the standards and is leading the development of expanded instrument libraries and assessment of instrument performance.

“Having these expanded libraries will improve responder capability to identify new drugs they encounter and respond in a more effective manner.”

S&T was mandated by Congress (through the Office of Management and Budget Circular A-119 on Federal Participation in the Development and Use of Voluntary Consensus Standards and in Conformity Assessment Activities) to promote the development, publication, adoption and use of standards developed through the voluntary consensus process that fulfill critical mission needs, which this effort clearly demonstrates.

“This effort integrated the requirements and needs of the stakeholder and user community,” said Senior Standards Advisor Mattson, “with rules and regulations (R&R) and supporting standards development to enable delivery of this much needed tool to the response community.”

Not only do these new standards comply with the mandate, more importantly they translate to a real-world benefit for end-users and hopefully many lives saved.

(Learn More. The opioid crisis is on the rise in the COVID-era. Communities, and particularly first responders, are at great risk and require new capabilities to protect their health and safety. To answer this call, S&T is partnering with the U.S. Department of Energy‘s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory to enhance field detection of synthetic opioids and other drugs in real-time. Learn how your hometown will benefit from these efforts in the battle against opioids. Courtesy of DHS Science and Technology Directorate and YouTube. Posted on Jun 21, 2021.)

To Learn More, visit the ASTM International website and access these and other ASTM-approved and published standards.

For more information on S&T’s standards portfolio, visit https://www.dhs.gov/science-and-technology/standards  or contact Standards@hq.dhs.gov.