JFK Airport Needs Upgrades To Stop Opioid Smuggling, Schumer Says

NEW YORK, NY — U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer on Sunday called for $5 million in federal funds to upgrade JFK Airport's tools for catching smuggled opioids.

The New York senator wants to crack down on the flow of fentanyl and other opioids through JFK Airport with new, high-tech equipment that can better spot the illicit drugs.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's 2019-2020 budget earmarks $16 million for upgrading opioid detection equipment, and Schumer said he wants a third of that to go to upgrades at JFK — the country's largest mail-processing facility.

"JFK’s facility needs continuous upgrades to keep pace with fast-changing methods by traffickers," Schumer said. "We need more canines, staff, new infrastructure to the processing facilit, and state-of-the-art detection equipment to fully disrupt the opioid supply chain."

The funds would pay for devices that use x-ray technology to identify opioids hidden in packages that travel through the airport's mail-processing facility.

"We know China’s opioid assembly line to New York and Long Island starts at JFK, but it can end there, too," Schumer said.