Overdose increases in the overall population were smaller
In the overall population, the percentage increases were not nearly as large in 2020 and 2021 as they were for adolescents.
Rates of overdose deaths in the overall population increased steadily from 2010 and reached 70,630 in 2019. In 2020, the deaths increased to 91,799 (an increase of 29.48% from 2019) and increased 11.48% in 2021.
The researchers analyzed numbers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention WONDER (Wide-Ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research) database, which has records of all U.S. deaths for which drug overdose was listed as the underlying cause.
The authors and Dr. Brady report no relevant financial relationships.