U.S. House bill extends temporary ban on fentanyl look-alikes

The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill on Wednesday that will temporarily extend the Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA) class-wide ban on all variants of the powerful synthetic drug fentanyl, which has helped fuel the opioid crisis in the United States.

The bill, which was identical to a version already approved in the U.S. Senate earlier this month, will now make its way to President Donald Trump's desk for his signature just in time before the DEA's temporary powers on fentanyl analogues expire on Feb. 6.