For six consecutive months, drug overdose deaths have declined in the U.S., according to recently released figures by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). From May 2023 to May 2024, the CDC says deaths decreased by 12.7%. Dr. Rahul Gupta, Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, calls it the largest recorded drop in overdose deaths to date.
“When President Biden and Vice President Harris took office, the number of drug overdose deaths was increasing 31% year-over-year,” said Gupta in a statement. “This new data shows there is hope, there is progress, and there is an urgent call to action for us all to continue working together across all of society to reduce drug overdose deaths and save even more lives.”
Gupta credited several key factors for this turnaround, including stronger efforts to stop drug trafficking, reducing barriers for substance use disorder treatment, and wider availability of life-saving opioid overdose reversal drugs like naloxone, now sold over-the-counter. As reported by Emily’s Hope this week, a study in JAMA Network Open highlighted a 43.5% increase in bystanders administering naloxone from June 2020 to June 2022.
“Early administration is critical in many cases, as evidenced by one study, which found layperson intervention preceded EMS by five minutes or more in 59.5% of cases,” researchers wrote.
Emily’s Hope has contributed to these efforts by placing free Narcan boxes at key locations throughout Sioux Falls, South Dakota, including Falls Community Health, Jones421 Market, and Tires Tires Tires.