Fewer people are dying from drug overdoses, offering hope that the crisis is slowing

Drug-related overdose and poisoning deaths in Los Angeles County in 2023 remained steady for the first time in 10 years after meteoric rises tied to the worst overdose crisis in both local and national history, according to a Los Angeles County Department of Public Health analysis issued Monday.

Based on data from the Department of Medical Examiner, the report indicated that plateauing of overdoses and poisonings speaks to the impact of the county's expansion of overdose prevention and response efforts, DPH said.

"The number of lives lost due to overdoses and poisonings have been devastating," DPH director Barbara Ferrer said in a statement.

"The findings demonstrate that through a continuum of preventative, harm reduction, and treatment approaches, we can bend the curve on overdoses. That said, we are still at historic highs in terms of overdose and poisoning numbers and have a lot of work ahead of us to ensure continued declines in deaths. I encourage everyone to get naloxone, the overdose prevention medication, and to feel empowered to seek help for their substance use."

The data was analyzed and released by DPH's Bureau of Substance Abuse Prevention and Control as part of an annual update which provides information on overdoses and poisonings across the county related to fentanyl. The report is available on the DPH website.

Additional findings of the DPH data analysis include:

-- Drug-related overdose and poisoning deaths dropped slightly from 3,220 in 2022 to 3,092 last year. This was the first reduction in deaths since 2014, after historic increases in overdose and poisoning deaths by over 300% over the past decade. While 2023 national overdose and poisoning death data remains provisional, it suggests that there is a potential plateauing of overdose and poisoning deaths nationally as well;

-- Fentanyl continues to be a primary contributor to overdose and poisoning deaths, with methamphetamine being almost equally as deadly;

-- Adults between the ages of 26 and 64 continue to represent the highest overdose and poisoning deaths both in raw numbers and rates;

-- Black populations are disproportionately represented in overdose and poisoning deaths, whereas Latinx and White populations represent the highest raw numbers of fatalities, respectively. This was the first year in which fentanyl-related Latinx overdose and poisoning numbers rose above that of white populations; and

-- Overdose and poisoning deaths continue to impact individuals across socioeconomic status and affluence.

In response to the tragic toll of the overdose crisis, LA County has scaled up investments in substance use prevention, treatment and harm reduction services by over 260%, 275%, and 500%, respectively. The collective impact of these intersecting interventions offers the best opportunity to address the varied needs of county residents and to further reduce overdose and poisoning death rates, according to DPH.