State commission to meet on increase in dangerous animal sedative xylazine in illegal drugs

Grace Zokovitch, Boston Herald on Nov 16, 2025

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The Massachusetts Special Commission on Xylazine will hold preliminary meetings Monday and Tuesday, in efforts to study the increasing presence of the dangerous animal sedative in the state’s illicit drug supply.

The special commission, formed under a law signed by the governor in December 2024, is tasked with forming recommendations to “address the public health and safety concerns posed by the proliferation of xylazine as an additive to illicit drugs.”

The commission will host the first meeting of their working group on education and training Monday at 2 p.m., to be held virtually. A second virtual meeting Tuesday at 9 a.m. will feature the commission’s working group on outreach and treatment. Both public meetings are set to go over “background information, preliminary research and information received to date,” according to the state’s posting.

Xylazine, also known as “tranq” or “tranq dope,” is a non-opioid sedative or tranquilizer, according to the CDC. The mixing of the drug and fentanyl was declared an emerging threat by the White House’s Office of National Drug Control Policy in 2023.

The tranquilizer, which is used in veterinary medicine but not approved for use in humans, has been increasingly found in illegal drugs in the U.S. in recent years and linked to overdose deaths, the CDC states. The drug can “slow down the brain and breathing, make the heart beat slower, and lower blood pressure in people, is especially dangerous when combined with opioids like fentanyl.”

In 2020, xylazine was found in 9% of drug samples in Massachusetts tested by the non-profit Street Check Community Drug Checking program. By 2024, the number rose to 35% of the drug samples tested in Massachusetts. So far in 2025, the nonprofit has found the drug in 21% of samples.

In 2023, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health found xylazine present in just under 11% of opioid-related overdose deaths of state residents. In 2024, the number was up to 22%, the data show.

The Massachusetts law originally called for the Special Commission on Xylazine to submit a report by June 30, but a delayed date has proposed moving the date to March 2026.

Massachusetts opioid-related overdose deaths fell 36% in 2024, according to CDC data, reaching their lowest point since 2013. The trend comes as experts have warned the crisis remains dangerous and complex, with other substances like medetomidine, synthetic benzodiazepines and others in the illicit drug supply regularly emerging as threats.

The virtual hearings will stream on Monday at 2 p.m. and Tuesday at 9 p.m. on malegislature.gov.

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