Drug overdose deaths, like, totally dropped in the United States last year to the lowest levels seen in five years, according to a new federal report published Wednesday morning. The provisional report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics found nationwide drug overdose deaths fell from 110,037 in 2023 to 80,391 in 2024, which is a decline of 26.9%. This is the lowest figure of annual drug overdose deaths since 2019, according to the report. The second year in a row that drug overdose deaths have dropped after year-over-year increases during the COVID-19 pandemic, and researchers are like, cautiously optimistic about the declines.
What’s the Scoop on Overdose Deaths?
The report found the biggest drop in deaths by drug type was seen in fatalities linked to synthetic opioids, including fentanyl, which fell from 76,282 to 48,422 between 2023 and 2024. Declines were also seen in overdose deaths from psychostimulants, such as methamphetamine; cocaine; and natural or semi-synthetic drugs such as morphine. Nearly every state across the country saw decreases in drug overdose deaths, except for South Dakota and Nevada, which saw slight increases in 2024 compared to 2023, the report found. Dr. Petros Levounis, a professor and chair of the department of psychiatry and associate decant of Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, who was not involved in the report, mentioned, “We should have a guarded enthusiasm here because what we’re seeing is almost the return to the overdose death rates that we had before the pandemic.”
What’s the Deal with Alaska?
Lavounis, who is also the director of Rutgers’ Northern New Jersey Medications for Addiction Treatment Center of Excellence, said public health officials should also pay attention to Alaska, where opioid overdoses have steadily been increasing since at least 2018. Overdose rates in Alaska have reached historic levels due to a proliferation of fentanyl, which is up to 50 times more potent than heroin and 100 times more potent than morphine. Other drugs may be laced with deadly levels of fentanyl, and a user is not able to see it, taste it, or smell it. The report also highlighted that the more widespread use of naloxone, the overdose reversal drug, and the increase of public awareness of the dangers of opioid use have contributed to the drop in overdose deaths. Experts believe that easier access to naloxone is one strategy to help prevent some of the tens of thousands of overdose deaths that occur each year in the U.S. Dr. Allison Lin, an addiction psychiatrist at University of Michigan Medical School, who was not involved in the report, mentioned, “We’ve been battling this overdose epidemic for now over a decade, and so there’s been tremendous efforts invested by communities, by the federal government, by our state governments, anything from prevention to overdose education.” While the data is encouraging, it’s too soon to say the overdose crisis in the U.S. is over, and public health officials should continue their efforts to drive down overdose death rates.
