News Report | December 16, 2018
70,000+ Drug Overdose Deaths Reported In 2017, Up 9.6% From 2016
In 2017, there were 70,237 drug overdose deaths in the U.S. This is a 9.6% increase in the age-adjusted rate of drug overdose deaths from 2016 (21.7 per 100,000 in 2017 versus 19.8 per 100,000 in 2016). Drug overdose deaths are defined as deaths resulting from unintentional or intentional overdose of a drug, being given the wrong drug, taking a drug in error, or taking a drug inadvertently.
These findings were reported in "Drug Overdose Deaths in the United States, 1999–2017" by Holly Hedegaard, M.D., Arialdi M. Miniño, M . . .