US overdose deaths dropped in 2023, the first time since 2018
NEW YORK (AP) — The number of U.S. fatal overdoses fell last year, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data posted Wednesday.
Agency officials noted the data is provisional and could change after more analysis, but that they still expect a drop when the final counts are in. It would be only the second annual decline since the current national drug death epidemic began more than three decades ago.
Experts reacted cautiously. One described the decline as relatively small, and said it should be thought more as part of a leveling off than a decrease. Another noted that the last time a decline occurred — in 2018 — drug deaths shot up in the years that followed.
“Any decline is encouraging,” said Brandon Marshall, a Brown University researcher who studies overdose trends. “But I think it’s certainly premature to celebrate or to draw any large-scale conclusions about where we may be headed long-term with this crisis.”
Related articles
Mystery artist who erected signs comparing pothole
A defiant resident infuriated by the potholes in their road has taken revenge on the council by erec2024-05-21Kirsten Dunst says she STILL gets a Christmas cake from Interview With The Vampire co
Kirsten Dunst says that she still gets a Christmas cake every year from Interview With The Vampire c2024-05-21Facebook and Instagram down in apparent global outages
Photo: AFP2024-05-21Teresa Urquijo, 28, granddaughter of Princess Teresa of Bourbon
Teresa Urquijo has tied the knot with Mayor of Madrid José Luis Martínez-Almeida in a glittering cer2024-05-21The government wants to buy their flood
HOUSTON (AP) — After the floodwaters earlier this month just about swallowed two of the six homes th2024-05-21Amanda Bynes' former Nickelodeon co
Former Nickelodeon star Raquel Lee Bolleau has shared her own experience of alleged abuse in a new e2024-05-21
atest comment