The federal government is sending law enforcement teams to cities in five states, including New York and Massachusetts, to help stop the flow of heroin and synthetic opioids.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration says the teams will enhance the agency's ability to combat problems surrounding heroin, fentanyl and drug trafficking violence.
The DEA is sending teams to Cincinnati and Cleveland; Long Island, New York; Raleigh, North Carolina; New Bedford, Massachusetts; and Charleston, West Virginia.
The agency considered fatal overdose rates, levels of heroin and fentanyl seizures, and where extra resources would have the greatest impact in selecting cities.
U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in August that he was dispatching 12 federal prosecutors to cities ravaged by addiction.
Those prosecutors will focus exclusively on investigating health care fraud and opioid scams.
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