PHOENIX – Attorney General Mayes released the following statement after her meeting with Vice President Harris and other state attorneys general to discuss the fentanyl public health crisis:
Today, I joined seven other state attorneys general at the White House to meet with Vice President Harris to discuss the fentanyl public health crisis. I am grateful to the Vice President for her focus on this issue and for the invitation to discuss our efforts in Arizona. I shared that in the past year alone, the Arizona Attorney General's Office and our law enforcement partners have seized approximately 7.8 million fentanyl pills. I also relayed the fact that you cannot talk about solutions to the fentanyl crisis in Arizona without addressing border security. With Arizona law enforcement agencies seizing approximately half of all fentanyl pills seized in the United States, more resources are needed to stop our state from serving as the fentanyl funnel to the rest of the country.
Few families in Arizona and across our country haven't been touched in some way by this public health crisis – with more experiencing the horrors of these drugs daily. We need to throw everything we can at this crisis – new technology at the border, enhanced and strengthened partnerships, and access to more funding. I stand ready to work with anyone committed to solving this crisis so we can save lives and help Arizona families and communities heal.