Opioid Overdose Deaths Fell Sharply From 79,358 In 2023 To 54,045 In 2024
March 11, 2026
Opioid overdose deaths fell sharply from 79,358 in 2023 to 54,045 in 2024, according to an analysis by KFF, a non-profit organization focused on health policy. This decrease was driven largely by decreases in fentanyl-involved deaths. However, opioid deaths remained above 2019 levels (prior to COVID-19), even after these declines.
The findings are based on data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC’s) WONDER database using finalized 2024 mortality records, representing the most current figures available at the time of the review. Total drug overdose deaths also declined 24%, from 105,007 in 2023 to 79,384 in 2024.
The burden of opioid deaths varied across demographic groups. In 2024, opioid death rates were highest among adults ages 26 to 44 and 45 to 64, at 29.1 and 24.9 per 100,000, respectively. By race and ethnicity, American Indian and Alaska Native people had the highest opioid death rate at 35.5 per 100,000, and Black people had somewhat higher rates (22.8 per 100,000) than White people (17.5 per 100,000). Opioid death rates among males were more than double those among females, at 22.5 per 100,000 versus 9.5 per 100,000. All demographic groups saw declines in opioid death rates from 2023 to 2024, although most groups still had higher rates in 2024 than in 2019.
State-level variation was also significant. Opioid death rates in 2024 ranged from 3.3 per 100,000 in Nebraska to 38.6 per 100,000 in West Virginia. All states saw declines in opioid overdose death rates from 2023 to 2024, with the largest drops recorded in West Virginia (46%), Virginia (44%), and Wisconsin. However, about half of states continued to have opioid overdose rates above 2019 levels by the end of 2024.
These findings were presented in Opioid Overdose Deaths: National Trends and Variation by Demographics and States, by KFF. The goal was to examine opioid overdose deaths over time.
The full text of Opioid Overdose Deaths: National Trends and Variation by Demographics and States was published on February 24, 2026, by KFF. A free copy is available (accessed March 4, 2026).
For more information, contact: Craig Palosky, Director of Communications, KFF, 1330 G Street Northwest, Washington, District of Columbia 20005; Email: cpalosky@kff.org; Website: http://www.kff.org/
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