Deaths are projected to decline in 45 of the 50 states, with five states projected to rise, and in Alaska, Montana, Nevada, South Dakota and Utah.
In the US, drug overdose deaths have decreased in the US, but it remains the leading cause of death for people aged 18 to 44, according to recent estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“New preliminary data from the CDC’s National Vital Statistics System project a nearly 24% decrease in drug overdose deaths in the US over the 12 months to end in September 2024 compared to the previous year,” the agency said in a statement on February 25th.
He said there were around 87,000 drug overdose deaths between October 2023 and September 2024, down from around 114,000 in the previous year. Dates are for 2024.
The 87,000 figure is “the lowest overdose death in the 12-month period since June 2020.”
The CDC attributed the DIP of estimated deaths from overdose to multiple factors, including changes in the supply of illicit drugs, improved access to evidence-based treatments in people suffering from substance use disorders, and the distribution of naloxone, which could reverse overdose.
Alison Alwadi, director of the CDC’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, called the decline in predicted overdose deaths at over 27,000 in a “unprecedented” year. This will save more than 70 people every day.
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“The CDC’s public health investment, improved data and experimental systems for overdose response, and partnerships with public safety colleagues from any state means we are more rapidly identifying new drug threats and supporting public health prevention and response efforts in communities across America,” she said.
Despite a significant drop in the preliminary death statistics, drug overdose continues to be the leading cause of death among Americans between the ages of 18 and 44, the CDC said.
In 2017, President Donald Trump declared that opioids would overdose public health emergency.
The CDC praised the following public health investments from Congress in government agencies for its designation that continues to remain in place and “change the country’s ability to use data to save lives.”
According to the agency, deaths from opioids, particularly synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, account for the majority of deaths from drug overdose.
Countermeasures fentanyl influx
Earlier this month, Trump signed an order that imposes an additional 10% tariff on imports from China, and an order that imposes a 25% tariff on goods from Mexico and Canada.
The White House said at the time that tariffs are “necessary to China, Mexico and Canada to take responsibility for their commitment to stop the flooding of toxic drugs into the United States.”
China has played an important role in fentanyl flowing to the US. Chinese companies “produce almost all of the illegal fentanyl precursors, an important element of promoting illegal fentanyl trade around the world,” according to a House Committee report released last year.
The Chinese Communist regime is directly subsidizing the production and export of illegal fentanyl materials by providing tax rebates, according to the report. The administration failed to indict fentanyl and precursor manufacturers, “to benefit strategically and economically from the fentanyl crisis.”
The act “helps improve the process of inspecting fentanyl and other forms of contraband vehicles, trucks and cargo containers at both the north and south borders.”
This is done by requesting that the US Customs and Border Protection Agency (CBP) test new detection pilot projects, taking into account cost-effectiveness, latency and existing infrastructure needs at land ports.”
