Kansas City Hires Overdose Investigators to Combat Fentanyl-Related Deaths

Mayor Quinton Lucas says overdose deaths have reached “epidemic levels” in Kansas City.

Evidence bags containing fentanyl are displayed during a news conference at Surrey RCMP Headquarters, in Surrey, B.C, on Sept. 3, 2020. Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press

Kansas City will be hiring two new overdose investigators as part of an ordinance passed by the city council on Thursday, aiming to help combat the fentanyl death epidemic in the city of Missouri.

The ordinance, proposed by Mayor Quinton Lucas, would enable the city health department to employ two investigators for fentanyl tracing and require fentanyl overdoses to be reported within 24 hours.