Opioid-related deaths on the decline for first time in three years, says Mass. Department of Health

For the first time since 2019, Opioid-related deaths are on the decline, according to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.

According to MDPH, the Bay State experienced 1,696 opioid overdose deaths through the first nine months of 2022, a 1.5 percent decrease over the same period of time in 2021.

“Since taking office in 2015, our administration made the opioid epidemic an urgent priority, signing two landmark laws to strengthen and expand efforts addressing this public health crisis and working with the Legislature to exponentially increase funding to support prevention, intervention, treatment, and recovery services in the Commonwealth,” said Governor Charlie Baker. “We are proud of our efforts to make these services more accessible and available to individuals and their families across Massachusetts, but also recognize that the work must continue, especially given the challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic which has exacerbated substance misuse here and across the country.”

In 2021, the rate of opioid-related overdose deaths increased by a sharp 9.4 percent.

According to MDPH, the Baker administration has expanded substance abuse disorder treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic, including the placement of 210,000 naloxone kits in community centers, hospitals and houses of corrections throughout the state. Over $9.5 million of funding from Massachusetts’ Opioid Recovery and Remediation Fund has been used to increase access to housing and treatment for those struggling with substance abuse disorder.

“Every life lost to opioid overdose is its own tragedy,” said Public Health Commissioner Margret Cooke. “With this report, we are encouraged by the decrease, however modest, in opioid-related overdose deaths in Massachusetts so far this year. We will continue to build on our data-driven and equity-based public health approach as we address the impacts of the opioid epidemic and the COVID-19 pandemic, especially among vulnerable populations.”

Fentanyl is the main driver of opioid-related overdose deaths in Massachusetts, appearing in 94 percent of fatal toxicology reports through the first six months of 2022.

Males accounted for 72 percent of opioid-related overdose deaths in 2022.

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