Drug overdose deaths continue to trend down but remain high, CDC says

Drug overdose deaths continue to trend down, dropping slightly for the fifth straight month, according to data published Wednesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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The CDC estimates more than 107,000 people died of a drug overdose in the 12-month period ending August 2022. That's nearly 3,000 fewer deaths than the record number recorded in the 12-month period ending March 2022.

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However, it's still more than 50% higher than it was three years before that.

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Synthetic opioids, such as fentanyl, continue to be involved in more than two-thirds of overdose deaths, which may involve multiple drugs at the same time.