FRANKFORT, Ky. (FOX 56) — A deadly street drug is making its way through Kentucky, and officials are working to stop it before more lives are lost.
Bromazolam, also known as “designer Xanax,” is reportedly being sold online and on the streets and often passed off as a prescription pill. Attorney General Russell Coleman called on the Drug Enforcement Administration to schedule bromazolam at the federal level at the beginning of August.
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Until federal officials take action, Gov. Andy Beshear stepped in to schedule the drug at the state level, banning bromazolam usage in the Commonwealth.
“Team Kentucky has made important progress in our fight against addiction, with three straight years of declines in overdose deaths, and we’re committed to ensuring that work continues,” the governor said in a Monday, Aug. 18, news release. “This deadly drug has no place in our communities, and now we have the tools needed to get it off the streets and protect more lives.”
The governor’s office reports that 48 people have died due to bromazolam since 2024.
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“By answering our call to take emergency action on bromazolam, we have given Kentucky law enforcement new tools to keep this dangerous drug off our streets,” Coleman said. “I’m proud of the zealous collaboration with the Northern Kentucky Drug Strike Force to sound the alarm and save lives. We live in a moment when as little as one pill can kill—and is killing—our kids. I’m glad we could work together to tackle this grave threat.”
Kentucky is among five other states that have designated bromazolam as a Schedule 1 controlled substance.
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