Sandhya Raman | (TNS) CQ-Roll Call WASHINGTON — Drug overdose deaths dropped a record amount during the past year, according to provisional data the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released Wednesday. The CDC reported that 94,758 individuals died because of drug overdoses in the 12-month period ending May 2024 — a 15 percent drop from the previous 12-month period. The agency estimates that number may rise to 98,820 when finalized, which would be a 12.
7 percent drop. Rahul Gupta, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, commended the data, which showed a decline in nationwide drug-related deaths for the sixth month in a row. “We are at a critical inflection point,” said Gupta.
“This new data shows there is hope, there is progress, and there is an urgent call to action for us all to continue working together across all of society to reduce drug overdose deaths and save even more lives.” Synthetic opioids like fentanyl are still involved in the majority of drug overdose deaths. Wednesday’s data highlighted regional differences in efforts to successfully curb drug-related deaths.
North Carolina reported the largest change in overdose deaths, seeing a 48.8 percent drop over the previous period. Eight other states — Nebraska, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio, Oklahoma, Virginia, Delaware and New Jersey — also reported at least a 21 percent decrease in overdose deaths.
But several Western states bucked the trend and reported increa.
