WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Ed Markey (D-MA), Roger Wicker (R-MS), and Jon Tester (D-MT) today introduced the Prevent Exposure to Narcotics and Toxins (PREVENT) Act, which protects border patrol agents from secondary exposure to deadly narcotics including opioids.
“There is a crisis at the southern border, and our border patrol is the first line of defense,” said Dr. Cassidy. “We need to do everything possible to keep them out of harm’s way as they combat the flow of deadly drugs coming over from Mexico.”
“Border patrol officers are on the frontlines of our efforts to combat illegal and dangerous drugs at our southern border,” said Senator Brown. “Following our success in securing new screening devices for federal law enforcement agents, we need to do more to protect border patrol agents from these dangerous drugs during transit.”
Specifically, the PREVENT Act:
- Directs the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Secretary and the Commissioner of Customs and Border Protection to purchase containment devices, a critical tool in safely storing illicit narcotics, for all frontline border patrol agents and provide training for their effective use.
- Trains officers on how to use containment devices to prevent potential synthetic opioid exposure.
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