Source: Health Policy Institute of Ohio
Overdose death rates increased 44% in Black communities and 39% for American Indian and Alaska Native communities from 2019 to 2020, according to new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data (Source: “National Overdose Death Rates Significantly Increased for Black, American Indian/Alaska Native People: CDC Study,” Cleveland.com, July 19, 2022).
A new CDC Vital Signs report found that white communities have also experienced a 22% increase in overdose deaths, and Hispanic communities a 21% increase. In total, 91,799 drug overdose deaths occurred in the United States in 2020, representing a 30% increase from the previous year.
Black people aged 15 to 24 years old saw an 86% increase in overdose deaths, the largest increase of any age and race group.
“The increase in overdose deaths and widening disparities are alarming,” said CDC Acting Principal Deputy Director Debra Houry, MD, MPH, in a statement. “Overdose deaths are preventable, and we must redouble our efforts to make overdose prevention a priority.”