U.S. Overdose Deaths Fall 14% in 2025 to Approximately 70,000

Approximately 70,000 Americans died of drug overdoses in 2025, a 14% decrease from the previous year and the third consecutive annual drop. Deaths peaked at nearly 110,000 in 2022. The decline occurred across fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine. In April 2026, federal officials notified grant recipients the government would no longer pay for test strips that detect lethal additives, raising concerns about sustaining progress.

Overdose death decline

• ▪U.S. overdose deaths declined at a slower pace in 2025 compared to previous years.
• ▪The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released preliminary overdose death data on May 13, 2026.
• ▪Brandon Marshall is a Brown University researcher who studies overdose trends.
• ▪Approximately 70,000 Americans died of drug overdoses in 2025.
• ▪Overdose deaths in 2025 declined across multiple drug types including fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine.
• ▪The 2025 U.S. overdose death total is approximately the same as the 2019 tally, before the Covid-19 pandemic.
• ▪The 2025 U.S. overdose death decline was the third consecutive annual drop.
• ▪U.S. overdose deaths fell approximately 14% in 2025 compared to the previous year.

Pandemic spike factors

• ▪U.S. overdose deaths peaked at nearly 110,000 in 2022.
• ▪U.S. overdose deaths declined as the Covid-19 pandemic waned.

Regional variations

• ▪Seven U.S. states saw at least slight increases in overdose deaths in 2025.
• ▪Overdose deaths in 2025 fell in the vast majority of U.S. states.
• ▪New Mexico saw a jump of 10% or more in overdose deaths in 2025.

Emerging synthetic drugs

• ▪The Center for Forensic Science Research and Education identified 27 new drugs in all of 2025.
• ▪Alex Krotulski is director of the Center for Forensic Science Research and Education.
• ▪The Center for Forensic Science Research and Education identified 23 new drugs in less than five months into 2026.
• ▪Cychlorphine is a potent synthetic opioid described as up to 10 times stronger than fentanyl.

Trump administration cuts

• ▪The federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration notified federal grant recipients in April 2026 that the government would no longer pay for test strips and kits that help drug users see if their drugs contain highly-lethal additives.
• ▪Kimberly Douglas founded Black Moms Against Overdose after her 17-year-old son died from an overdose.

Perspective of Public health advocates and harm reduction organizations

• ▪Federal funding cuts in April 2026 eliminating payment for drug testing strips and kits remove critical tools that help drug users detect highly-lethal additives.

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