Category: Drug Use (legal)

U.S. Overdose Deaths Decrease in 2023, First Time Since 2018

Prescription bottle with syringe and pills.

Provisional data from CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics indicate there were an estimated 107,543 drug overdose deaths in the United States during 2023—a decrease of 3% from the 111,029 deaths estimated in 2022. This is the first annual decrease in drug overdose deaths since 2018. The data are featured in an interactive web data visualization. Read More >

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Second Round of Health Data Released by NCHS Rapid Surveys System

CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics has released the second round of survey data from the Rapid Surveys System. This survey includes topics such as: ADHD Chronic Pain Contraception Use Fit Testing of Hearing Protection Devices Illegal Drugs and Naloxone (Narcan) Awareness Online Connectedness Swimming Technology-facilitated Sexual Violence Topics included in Rapid Surveys will vary Read More >

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PODCAST: NHANES Updates, Drug Overdose Deaths, and ER Visits From Motor Vehicle Crashes

https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/pressroom/podcasts/2021/20210618/20210618.htm HOST:  In March of 2020, field operations for the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey – or NHANES – were halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Field operations are scheduled to restart later this summer.  But the halt in operations presented a problem, since NHANES data traditionally is released in two-year cycles in order Read More >

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Unintentional Injury Death Rates in Rural and Urban Areas: United States, 1999–2017

Questions for Lead Author Henry Olaisen, EIS Fellow, of “Unintentional Injury Death Rates in Rural and Urban Areas: United States, 1999–2017.” Q: Can you define what an unintentional injury death is?  Is there a difference in the term accidental death? HO: Unintentional injury deaths consist of those deaths involving injuries for which there are no Read More >

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2017 Final Deaths, Leading Causes of Death and Life Tables Reports Released

NCHS released a report that presents the final 2017 data on U.S. deaths, death rates, life expectancy, infant mortality, and trends, by selected characteristics such as age, sex, Hispanic origin and race, state of residence, and cause of death. Key Findings: In 2017, a total of 2,813,503 deaths were reported in the United States. The Read More >

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Updated Provisional Drug Overdose Death Data: 12-Month Ending from November 2017- November 2018

Link: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/drug-overdose-data.htm Read More >

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Drug Overdose Deaths Involving Fentanyl, 2011–2016

Questions for Lead Author Merianne Spencer, M.P.H., Health Statistician, of “Drug Overdose Deaths Involving Fentanyl, 2011-2016.” Q: Why did you decide to do a report specifically on drug overdose deaths involving fentanyl? MS: Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid, is of interest to public health officials because of its increased involvement in drug overdose deaths and contributing Read More >

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Strategies Used by Adults Aged 18–64 to Reduce Their Prescription Drug Costs, 2017

A new NCHS report examines changes over time in the percentage of adults aged 18–64 who were prescribed medication and reported using these selected strategies to reduce their prescription drug costs in the past 12 months. Key Findings: Among adults aged 18–64 who were prescribed medication in the past 12 months, the percentage who used Read More >

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Updated Provisional Drug Overdose Death Data: 12-Month Ending from August 2017-August 2018

Link: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/drug-overdose-data.htm Read More >

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Updated Provisional Drug Overdose Death Data: 12-Month Ending from July 2017-July 2018

Link: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/drug-overdose-data.htm Read More >

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Mortality in the United States, 2017

Questions and Answers from the authors of the recently released 2017 mortality data.  The data can be found in the following reports, “Mortality in the United States, 2017, ” “Drug Overdose Deaths in the United States, 1999–2017, ” and “Suicide Mortality in the United States, 1999–2017.” Q: Why did life expectancy decline in 2017? A: Read More >

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QuickStats: Age-Adjusted Death Rates for Drug Overdose by Race/Ethnicity — National Vital Statistics System, United States, 2015–2016

During 2015–2016, the age-adjusted death rates from drug overdose for the total population increased from 16.3 per 100,000 standard population to 19.8 (21.5%). The rate increased from 21.1 to 25.3 (19.9%) for non-Hispanic whites, from 12.2 to 17.1 (40.2%) for non-Hispanic blacks, and from 7.7 to 9.5 (23.4%) for Hispanics. Source: National Vital Statistics System, Underlying Read More >

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Q and As on “Mortality in the United States, 2016” and “Drug Overdose Deaths in the United States, 1999-2016”

Questions for Bob Anderson, Chief of the Mortality Statistics Branch, on the following reports, “Mortality in the United States, 2016” and “Drug Overdose Deaths in the United States, 1999-2016.” Q: How significant is it that life expectancy¹ in the U.S. has declined two years in a row? A:  This is the first time life expectancy Read More >

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Stat of the Day – October 30, 2017

#STATOFTHEDAY #DrugOverdose #DeathRate for US teens aged 15-19 doubled from 1999 (1.6) to 2015 (3.7) https://t.co/LH4w4INX4d #RedRibbonWeek — NCHS (@NCHStats) October 30, 2017 Read More >

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Antidepressant Use in Persons Aged 12 and Over: United States, 2011-2014

Questions for Laura Pratt, Psychiatric Epidemiologist and Author of “Antidepressant Use in Persons Aged 12 and Over: United States, 2011-2014” Q:  Are more people taking antidepressants now vs. in the past? LP:   Yes, in our data brief, figure 4, you can see how antidepressant use has increased over time from 1999-2002 to 2011-2014.  Slightly less Read More >

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Stat of the Day – June 8, 2017

#STATOFTHEDAY 59% of men with daily anxiety/depression don’t take meds or talk to a professional https://t.co/66D9H1lN9Z #MensHealthMonth — NCHS (@NCHStats) June 8, 2017 Read More >

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Stat of the Day – May 17, 2017

#STATOFTHEDAY #DrugOverdose #Mortality in US up 13% from 15.5/100,000 in Q2 2015 to 17.5 in Q2 2016 https://t.co/LuvAdJKNpT — NCHS (@NCHStats) May 17, 2017 Read More >

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Drug Poisoning Mortality: United States, 1999-2015

The CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) has released a new data visualization storyboard that presents drug poisoning deaths from 1999 to 2015 at the national, state, and county levels. The first two dashboards depict U.S. and state trends in age-adjusted death rates for drug poisoning from 1999 to 2015 by selected demographic characteristics, and Read More >

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Drugs Most Frequently Involved in Drug Overdose Deaths: United States, 2010–2014

Questions for Margaret Warner, Senior Epidemiologist  and Lead Author on “Drugs Most Frequently Involved in Drug Overdose Deaths: United States, 2010–2014.” Q: Why did you decide to do a report on drugs most frequently involved in drug overdose deaths? MW: From our routine mortality statistics, we know that drug overdose death rates are increasing, and Read More >

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Emergency Department Visits for Drug Poisoning: United States, 2008–2011

Poisoning is the leading cause of injury-related mortality in the United States, with more than 40,000 deaths annually. Drugs account for 90% of poisoning deaths, and the number of deaths from drug poisoning has increased substantially in recent years. The emergency department (ED) plays an important role in the treatment of poisoning. A new NCHS report Read More >

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Strategies Used by Adults to Reduce Their Prescription Drug Costs: United States, 2013

Approximately one-fifth (18%) of the $263 billion spent on retail prescription drugs in the United States in 2012 was paid out of pocket. Some adults offset the cost of prescription drugs by reducing the dosage and frequency of the recommended pharmacotherapy. Other cost-saving strategies include asking providers for less-expensive medications or purchasing medications abroad. A Read More >

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Strategies Used by Adults to Reduce Their Prescription Drug Costs

In 2011, Americans spent $45 billion out-of-pocket on retail prescription drugs. Some adults reduce prescription drug costs by skipping doses and delaying filling prescriptions; however, some cost-reduction strategies used by adults have been associated with negative health outcomes. For example, adults who do not take prescription medication as prescribed have been shown to have poorer health status and increased emergency Read More >

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Antidepressant Use in Americans 12 and Older

Surprisingly, only a third of the people with severe psychological symptoms actually take antidepressant medication. Despite this fact, antidepressants are still the third most commonly prescribed drug taken by Americans of all ages. From 2005-2008, cholesterol-lowering drugs and analgesics, also known as painkillers, were the top two most prescribed drugs, with antidepressants following closely behind. Read More >

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Increase in poisonings from opioid painkillers

NCHS recently released the report titled “Increase in Fatal Poisonings Involving Opioid Analgesics in the United States, 1999-2006.” This report shows the explosion of fatal poisonings from opioid painkillers over the past 7 years. For example, from 1999 through 2006, the number of fatal poisonings involving opioid analgesics more than tripled from 4,000 to 13,800 Read More >

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Anti-depressant Use

CNN recently ran a story that has gained some attention. It is entitled CDC: Antidepressants most prescribed drugs in U.S. […]According to a government study, antidepressants have become the most commonly prescribed drugs in the United States. They’re prescribed more than drugs to treat high blood pressure, high cholesterol, asthma, or headaches. CNN’s Elizabeth Cohen Read More >

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