Overdose deaths drop to lowest level since before the pandemic

• The drop in overdose deaths is partly due to the wider availability of naloxone which reverses an opioid overdose, per CBS News.
• Narcan, the best-known version of the drug, was made available over the counter in 2023. It is standard issue for first responders and available in other public places.

By the numbers: Overdose deaths involving opioids declined from an estimated 83,140 in 2023 to 54,743 in 2024, per provisional CDC National Center for Health Statistics.

• Overdose deaths involving cocaine and psychostimulants (like methamphetamine) decreased too.

Between the lines: Other factors contributing to the decline could include increased availability of paper test strips that detect fentanyl in illicit or counterfeit drugs. These can reduce fatal overdoses when people take fentanyl-laced pills that look like prescription drugs.

• There are also more opioid treatment programs or providers of buprenorphine, a treatment that reduces the risk of future overdoses. These still don't reach many areas most in need.

Zoom in: Almost all states saw decreases in overdose fatalities.

• Louisiana, Michigan, New Hampshire, Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin and Washington, D.C., experiencing declines of 35% or more, according to the data.
• However, South Dakota and Nevada recorded slight rises compared to the same period in 2023, the CDC notes.

What to watch: Experts warn a Trump administration budget proposal that would cut health services threatens this decline.

• A group of medical doctors and academic experts on addiction warned lawmakers in a letter this week that "drastic" cuts to federal health agencies and their grant recipients could set back efforts to address overdoses, substance use disorder and mental health.
• Experts are particularly concerned that budget cuts could hit addiction recovery programs in rural areas and impoverished urban neighborhoods, NPR reported. There's also concern about efforts to track new synthetic street drugs being sold in communities.

What they're saying: "The Trump administration is deploying a whole-of-government effort to end America's drug crisis: HHS is streamlining addiction programs under the newly-formed Agency for a Healthy America," White House spokesperson Kush Desai said in an emailed statement Wednesday.

• Customs & Border Patrol is cracking down on the flow of deadly drugs into our country; and our America First trade and economic agenda is revitalizing Main Streets across the country to end the environment fueling 'deaths of despair' overdoses."

CDC spokesperson Cassie Strawn said on Thursday that the drug overdose epidemic "remains a critically important health issue" in the U.S.

• "The Trump administration recently released its Drug Policy Priorities and HHS, under Secretary [Robert] Kennedy's leadership, remains steadfast in its commitment to not only prevent overdoses, but to prevent substances use disorders before they begin," she said in the emailed statement.
• "Congressional support has enabled CDC to expand critical data systems and strengthen overdose prevention capacity across all states," which helped the agency better understand the specific drivers of overdoses and "tailor prevention strategies to meet their unique local needs," Strawn said.
• "Through continued investments in public health prevention and data surveillance activities like the Overdose Data to Action program, CDC will continue to work for a future in which Americans no longer lose their lives to drug overdoses," she added.
• Strawn did not immediately respond to Axios' requests for comment on the proposed budget cuts.

Go deeper: Fatal drug overdoses are falling — but not everywhere

Editor's note: Adriel Bettelheim contributed reporting.

Editor's note: This story has been updated with comments from the White House and CDC.