Florida opioid crisis costs $709K per case
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The total average annual cost associated with each opioid abuse case in Florida is estimated to be $709,000, according to a comprehensive analysis provided first to Axios.
Why it matters: Opioid abuse isn't just a public health crisis, it's also an economic problem.
- Opioid use disorder — defined as frequent opioid use and unsuccessful efforts to quit — is estimated to affect more than 6 million people in the United States.
The big picture: Opioid use disorder cost the U.S. an estimated $4 trillion last year, per the analysis from Avalere, which used 2017 figures to project 2024 net costs.
- The projected cost of opioid use disorder in 2024 ranged from $419,527 per case in Idaho to more than $2.4 million in D.C. That covers lost productivity, health insurance costs, property lost to crime and other variables.
Between the lines: Overdose deaths in the U.S. fell to the lowest level since 2019 last year, partly due to expanded availability of the overdose reversal drug naloxone.
- But some addiction experts say cuts to federal grant funding and other program changes led by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. could hurt addiction recovery programs.
The fine print: Indivior, a pharmaceutical company specializing in treatments for opioid use disorder, funded the Avalere analysis.
Go deeper: Economic impacts, treatment