(NYT) – Five decades after the “war on drugs” sought to make substance abuse unaffordable, illicit drugs are cheaper and more powerful than ever. A visit to Baltimore shows why.

Because lab-made drugs are so easily mixed and altered, their effect is uncertain; few buyers know what they’re actually getting, and the possibilities are expanding dangerously. Last summer, several mass overdoses in Baltimore resulted when fentanyl was mixed with N-methylclonazepam, a powerful sedative. Across the country, 22 percent of drug samples contained five or more compounds, an increase from 8.8 percent in 2022, according to testing done by the National Institutes for Science and Technology. (Read More)