CDC National Vital Statistics System's Provisional Drug Overdose Death Counts

Posted 10/13/2020 (updated 3/27/2024)

The CDC’s National Vital Statistics System has been updated to now include data related to February 2020 overdose mortality, with trends indicating further worsening of the nation’s opioid epidemic. Trends over the prior twelve months indicated an 8.4% spike, amounting to more than 74,100 overdose deaths. This number is approximately 150 greater than the month prior and builds upon the 6.6% increase as of January 2020 and 4.8% in December 2019. With overall overdose rates trending upwards, particular attention should be focused towards fentanyl (and other synthetic opioids), cocaine, and psychostimulants, each of which has demonstrated a significant rise in the past 12 months and can be attributed as a main driver of these trends.