US Drug Overdose Deaths Show Steep Decline in Most Recent Data
Drug overdose deaths dropped almost 24% in the United States for the 12 months ending in September 2024 compared with the previous year, according to provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Vital Statistics System.
Between October 2022 and September 2023, nationwide drug overdose deaths reached 114,000. Over the following year, provisional data shows approximately 87,000 drug overdose deaths, the fewest in any 12-month period since June 2020.
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“It is unprecedented to see predicted overdose deaths drop by more than 27,000 over a single year,” said Allison Arwady, MD, MPH, director of CDC’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. “That’s more than 70 lives saved every day.”
With overdose still the leading cause of death for US residents aged 18 to 44 years, sustained efforts are necessary to ensure the progress continues, the agency said. Although the most recent data shows declines in overdose deaths in 45 states, deaths increased in 5 states: Alaska, Montana, Nevada, South Dakota, and Utah.
Coinciding with the large provisional decline in fatal overdoses are smaller decreases in nonfatal overdoses, which are measured through emergency department visits, and continued decreases in self-reported substance use by youth.
The CDC credited several factors for contributing to the overdose death decline, including widespread distribution of naloxone, better access to substance use disorder treatment, and shifts in the illegal drug supply. Following pandemic-related disruptions, prevention and response programs have also resumed.
The CDC's Overdose Data to Action program provides funding to 49 state and 41 local health departments to collect and use data in their communities to implement life-saving activities. Among the efforts, the program funds comprehensive laboratory testing that allows for the identification of emerging substances involved in overdoses, highlights geographic shifts in the illegal drug supply, and informs overdose prevention plans. The CDC also funds the Overdose Response Strategy, a public health-public safety data collaboration in every state that allows law enforcement officials to use data to better understand and intercept illegal drugs.
“We are moving in the right direction,” the agency stated, “and we must accelerate and strengthen CDC's continued investments in prevention to reduce overdose deaths. Expanding access to evidence-based treatment for substance use disorders—including medications for opioid use disorder such as buprenorphine and methadone—is important, in addition to building more community-driven interventions and promoting education and early intervention to prevent substance use disorders before they begin.”
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