Overdose deaths in the United States have reached new highs, peaking at nearly 108,000 in 2021, according to data published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), amid increased usage of fentanyl and methamphetamine.
On Wednesday, the CDC released provisional data that shows some 106,700 Americans died via a drug overdose last year, setting an all-time record. Overdose deaths increased 15 percent from 2020 to 2021, the CDC report noted. Overdose deaths increased by 30 percent between 2019 and 2020.
Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, called the latest numbers “truly staggering.”
“The net effect is that we have many more people, including those who use drugs occasionally and even adolescents, exposed to these potent substances that can cause someone to overdose even with a relatively small exposure,” Volkow said in a statement.
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