US overdose deaths involving synthetic opioids rose over tenfold in six years
In short: A CDC analysis of US overdose deaths from 2013 to 2019 found that the age-adjusted death rate involving synthetic opioids like illicitly made fentanyl rose 1,040%, from 1.0 to 11.4 per 100,000 people. Deaths involving psychostimulants such as methamphetamine rose 317% over the same period, climbing from 1.2 to 5.0 per 100,000.
Overdose deaths from drugs other than synthetic opioids rose too, but only among psychostimulants and cocaine when synthetic opioids weren't also involved, suggesting opioids are intertwined with much of the broader pattern. Between 2018 and 2019 alone, synthetic opioid deaths rose fastest in the West (up 67.9%) and psychostimulant deaths rose fastest in the Northeast (up 43.8%). The analysis draws on national overdose death data, which is comprehensive but observational and can't by itself explain why these shifts occurred.
Why it matters: The US overdose crisis is shifting toward synthetic opioids and stimulants, with different drugs rising fastest in different regions.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Research: Mattson et al. (2021). Trends and Geographic Patterns in Drug and Synthetic Opioid Overdose Deaths — United States, 2013–2019. MMWR Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
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