DEA Temporarily Bans Synthetic Drug Pink

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has temporarily banned the synthetic drug Pink under federal law, according to NBC News. The agency has received reports of at least 46 confirmed deaths associated with the drug.

The DEA has placed Pink, also called U-47700, on Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, alongside heroin, LSD and Ecstasy. The ban will last for 24 months, with a possible 12-month extension, before the DEA decides whether to make it permanent.

The drug is sold on the “dark web” in the form of a powder, pill or nasal spray.

“Abuse of the drug often happens unknowingly to the user, and is encountered as a single substance as well as in combination with other drugs such as heroin and fentanyl,” the DEA said in a statement. “Some bags are marked with stamped logos, imitating a heroin sale. In addition, the drug can be pressed into pill format and marketed as a wide variety of prescription opioids.”