The opioid epidemic continues to wreak havoc on the U.S. – By Lois M. Collins (Deseret News) / Nov 16, 2022
The CDC recently issued prescribing guidelines; meanwhile, illicit combination drugs are a growing challenge in U.S.
The number of U.S. deaths attributed to drug overdoses appeared to be down very slightly month to month in early 2022, but the year-over-year trend was up, as it generally has been for years. Deaths from opioids have followed the same pattern.
Nearly 78,000 people in the U.S. died due to an opioid overdose in the 12-month period ending in May of 2022. Overall, more than 103,000 U.S. deaths have been attributed to drug overdose in that period, including those opioid deaths. And because of reporting lags, the numbers are likely an undercount, based on actual but incomplete data.
That’s according to an update of provisional drug overdose deaths data released Wednesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The data is based on information available by Oct. 2, 2022, and doesn’t include drug deaths where the reporting was delayed or an investigation is ongoing.
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