Fentanyl’s grip in Minnesota extends even to young children who ingest the drug with fatal consequences

Minnesota is no exception when it comes to the stranglehold fentanyl has on the nation, where even young children who have overdosed — sometimes fatally — after accidentally ingesting the drug have become particularly vulnerable.

State data analyzed by the Star Tribune shows opioid-involved deaths among all age groups surged by 130% between 2019 and 2022, with fentanyl representing huge portions of those overdoses. In that same time, hundreds of youth younger than 20 survived overdoses of fentanyl and other opioids. Most overdoses struck during the pandemic.

“Here in Minnesota, nine out of 10 overdose deaths have fentanyl, and that’s coming from the medical examiner’s office,” said Alicia House, executive director for the Steve Rummler Hope Network. “It’s really important and it’s really scary and it’s something that everyone should be aware of.”

Minnesota reflects a nationwide trend of thousands of people being poisoned. A 2024 report by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration shows that nearly 300,000 people died of fentanyl poisoning between 2019 and 2023. DEA officials say Mexican cartels are driving the fentanyl epidemic, hiding the powder into other drugs before selling it to unsuspecting users.

Fentanyl has already created disastrous health and public safety threats for Twin Cities children.

St. Paul parents were charged with manslaughter and child endangerment this May after their 1-year-old daughter Mi’Vida Vorlicky ingested fentanyl and died. Investigators found fentanyl pills and other drug paraphernalia in their home, and discovered a hold was placed on Mi’Vida’s birth because her mother used fentanyl while in labor at the hospital.

A toddler died of suspected fentanyl poisoning at a Minneapolis shelter this May. Minneapolis Police responding to a call months later found three children, all believed to be under 5-years-old, in a home with hundreds of fentanyl pills on the floor. And a 2023 Star Tribune investigation into Minnesota’s child protection system unveiled failures in how the state protects its vulnerable youth from parents with addiction.

Calls to the Minnesota Poison Control Agency suggest the issue may be larger than data suggest. Dr. Travis Olives, associate medical director for the Minnesota Regional Poison Center, said calls to the center for children younger than 5 who were exposed to opioids have decreased from 65 in 2022 to seven this year. But Olives warned that nearly half of those children were under a year old, and dozens survived while suffering major side effects.

“It might be that more exposures went unrecognized this year, or that health care providers were comfortable managing these without input from the Poison Center and thus did not report them,” Olives said. “From these data we can’t say whether overall exposures have decreased, only that calls related to exposures have decreased. Since not all exposures will be called in, or even seen at health care facilities, it is highly likely that our data underestimates the true burden of disease in our community related to fentanyl exposures in young children.”

Despite the surge, advocates believe more resources and awareness could offer solutions. Department of Health officials suggest more people use Naloxone and fentanyl testing strips, offering people a way to reverse overdoses and to prevent an accidental poisoning. Ramsey County officials fighting violence fueled by fentanyl are supporting educational programs and nonprofit resources that support troubled youth. For those officials, as well as House and others working to prevent fentanyl overdoses among youth, awareness is key.

“Awareness, and the importance of getting this message across, is literally vital,” House said. “The more that we can get the message out and build awareness around the risks of fentanyl and then how you can be safe, the more lives, hopefully, we can save.”

Star Tribune staff writers Jessie Van Berkel and Paul Walsh contributed to this report.