US overdose deaths fell 10% after decades of rising

Drug overdose deaths in the US fell 10% year-on-year, new data showed.

Drug poisonings have been rising for decades, driven by prescription opioids and new street drugs such as fentanyl.

In 1999, fewer than 20,000 overdose deaths were recorded: In recent years, that figure has been over 100,000.

But the numbers plateaued in 2023 and early data showed that in the 12 months to April 2024, the toll was 101,000, down from 112,000 in the same period a year earlier.

The number is still staggeringly high, but researchers said that states with more up-to-date numbers showed even sharper declines.

Experts told NPR that new treatments for addiction, and law enforcement efforts reducing fentanyl availability, may be behind the drop.