Overdose deaths in 2023 fell for the first time since the pandemic

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Deadly drug overdoses in the United States declined last year for the first time since before the COVID-19 pandemic, new preliminary federal data show.

The big picture: It's a rare glimmer of positive news amid a drug epidemic that's gripped the nation for over two decades and still continues to kill over 100,000 people each year.

By the numbers: Drug overdose deaths fell 3% from 111,029 in 2022 to 107,543 last year, according to provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

But deaths from cocaine and stimulants like methamphetamine continued to tick up, as they are increasingly mixed with fentanyl, creating a new wave in the evolving drug epidemic. About 1 in 3 fatal overdoses last year involved stimulants, while just over 1 in 4 involved cocaine.

Some states had dramatic annual decreases in overdose deaths, with drops of more than 15% recorded in Indiana, Nebraska, Kansas and Maine.

While fentanyl took longer to move to the western part of the country, those states are now seeing some of the sharpest year-over-year increases in overdose deaths. Alaska, Oregon and Washington state all had increases of at least 27%.

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