Deadly look-alike pills popping up in Western Pennsylvania

PITTSBURGH — The drive to get painkillers off the streets is having an unintended consequence, deadly look-alikes, drug officials say.

The pills that look like oxycodone have been circulating in Western Pennsylvania, according to our news partners TribLIVE.

Like some oxycodone pills, these are blue, but they are actually fentanyl.

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Fentanyl is much more powerful than oxycodone and even a small amount can be deadly.

Nearly one-third of the pills confiscated this year have contained fentanyl, Drug Enforcement Administration agents told TribLIVE.

DEA officials believe drug cartels have started making these look-alike pills to get rid of their surplus and to lure drug-users who have shunned other illicit drugs.

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Cox Media Group