GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KFQX) — Andrea Thomas and the Voices for Awareness Foundation are wasting no time trying to save lives, “We are losing people everyday, we’re losing an entire generation and we are out of time we are past time,” Thomas said.

United States fentanyl related deaths nearly doubled in the past two years, “We are asking people to face fentanyl now,” Thomas said.

In 2020 fentanyl killed 35,000 people. In 2021 that number skyrocketed to 69,000, “It’s literally one pill could kill you,” Dan Rubinstein, 21st Judicial District Attorney said.

With more deaths every day, the Voices for Awareness foundation says the deaths are preventable, “We want to bring attention to something that can affect your family today, or when you go to bed tonight,” Thomas said.

August 21st is now national Fentanyl Awareness and Prevention day. Voices for Awareness created the days, “If you are selling laced drugs that have fentanyl in them and you kill somebody we are going to hold you accountable,” Rubinstein said.

Thanks to community partnerships with county and district leaders, prevention doesn’t stop with awareness, “We’d like to see the four gram law revisited where fentanyl is concerned and we would like to see our state pick up legislation on distribution resulting in death,” Thomas said.

District Attorney, Dan Rubinstein continues to meet with attorney’s from across the state to beef up legislation, “We want to create a new crime that is distribution resulting in death,” Rubinstein said.

Carrying a minimum mandatory sentence of 12 to 32 years in prison. On top of a new crime, Voices for Awareness is headed to the State Capitol to urge Governor Polis to have a Colorado Fentanyl Awareness and Prevention day, “Specifically for our state and be a leader for other states moving forward until our government addresses the attack on our youth,” Thomas said.

The Voices of Awareness foundation says Colorado lawmakers are writing legislation and hope to release details soon.