Drug overdose deaths surged in 14 states last year

The rate of drug overdose deaths increased significantly for both sexes, persons aged 25-44 years and ≥55 years, non-Hispanic whites and non-Hispanic blacks, and in the Northeastern, Midwestern, and Southern regions of the United States.

CDC analyzed recent multiple cause-of-death mortality data to examine current trends and characteristics of drug overdose deaths, including the types of opioids associated with drug overdose deaths.

Since 2000, deaths overall from drug overdoses have increased 137 percent while those from opioids have jumped 200 percent, the agency said. The agency this week released draft guidelines for family doctors, encouraging them to be more careful about prescribing opioids for chronic pain. Rates of drug overdose deaths were highest among five states: West Virginia, New Mexico, New Hampshire, Kentucky, and Ohio.

Prescription painkillers, heroin, and other opioids killed more than 28,000 people in the United States past year, driving the highest number of drug overdose deaths on record.

The Office of National Drug Control Policy, which held its first of several community forums on opioid misuse this week, echoed the CDC’s concern that the rise in fentanyl-related deaths comes predominantly from increases in illicitly manufactured fentanyl. “This report also shows how important it is that law enforcement intensify efforts to reduce the availability of heroin, illegal fentanyl, and other illegal opioids”.

In 2014, more than 47,000 Americans died from drug overdoses – a 14 percent increase over 2013. Both of these trends worsened in 2014, the researchers added. Deaths from heroin overdoses rose 26%. Many of these overdoses are believed to involve illicitly-made fentanyl, a short-acting opioid.

Prescription painkillers such as oxycodone and morphine are derived from the same poppy plants as heroin.

The CDC points to a dramatic rise in pain reliever prescriptions; more than four times as many prescriptions are written for them today as in 1999. The evidence-based initiative focuses on three promising areas: informing opioid prescribing practices, increasing the use of naloxone, and using Medication-Assisted Treatment to move people out of opioid addiction.

That states that saw significantly increased drug overdose deaths in 2014 when compared to 2013. Almost half a million lives have been lost to opioid drug overdoses since then.