Source: Health Policy Institute of Ohio
While Ohio reported fewer unintentional overdose fatalities in 2018, signaling a possible breakthrough in the crisis, a third of the 3,764 deaths reported were concentrated in three counties: Cuyahoga, Franklin, and Hamilton (Source: “Location Plays Role in Overdose Crisis,” Lima News, February 25, 2020).
The Ohio Department of Health released a report in late February tracking overdose fatalities in urban and rural areas, highlighting the places and populations hardest hit by the crisis.
Among the findings: small metropolitan counties like Allen, Belmont, Clark, Jefferson, and Richland witnessed the highest overdose fatality rate — 42.1 deaths per 100,000 population — even though a majority of the overdose fatalities were concentrated in the state’s largest urban counties.
While white men were the most likely to die from a drug overdose, the report found that black men died of overdoses at higher rates than white men in small metro counties. The age cohort with the most overdose fatalities fell between 35 and 44 years old.
To learn more about Ohio’s policy response to the addiction crisis, see HPIO’s Addiction Evidence Project.