Flunitrazepam, trade name Rohypnol, is a central nervous system depressant in a class of drugs called benzodiazepines. Benzodiazepines are sedative-hypnotics used to treat anxiety, insomnia and sleep disorders, and seizure disorders; they are also used as skeletal-muscle relaxants. (Sedative-hypnotics are dose-dependent drugs; lower doses promote sedation and relaxation, higher doses promote sleep. Other benzodiazepines include alpranzolam (Xanax), bromazepam chlordiazepoxide (Librium), lorazepam (Atavan), and diazepam (Valium), all of which are prescribed in the United States. Rohypnol, however, is ten times more potent than Valium, and while commonly prescribed for anxiety and sleep disorders in Europe, Latin America, and elsewhere, it was never approved for use or sale in the United States.4 Rohypnol pills are smuggled into the United States, often via international mail, and sold on the street in the manufacturers blister packaging (similar to over-the-counter cold medicine or birth control pill packaging). The round white tablets contain one or two milligrams of flunitrazepam. They are odorless, tasteless, and dissolve undetected in liquid. In response to reports implicating Rohypnol in drug-facilitated sexual assaults, the manufacturer reformulated the tablets. They now appear as oblong green tablets that include a dye that turns blue when dissolved in liquid, which makes the drug more easily detected in some drinks.The original white tablets are still available, however.
Though not approved for use in the United States, Rohypnol (flunitrazepam) is currently scheduled with other benzodiazepines as a Schedule IV controlled substance.However, under the Drug Induced Rape Prevention Act, federal penalties for trafficking Rohypnol are the same as those for Schedule I, II, and III substances, depending on quantity.