Pill press update: February through July 2026

Policymakers became generally aware of pill presses with the rise of the opioid crisis, when drug traffickers began selling counterfeit prescription pills made with fentanyl, with catastrophic results.

Illegal pill presses and molds continue to create fake pills that harm and even kill thousands of Americans every year. PSM's research team tracks when law enforcement seizes them, when customs officers interdict them at the border, when prosecutors charge people with their sale or usage, and when legislatures attempt to criminalize them.