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    U.S. Overdose Deaths Dipped In 2018, But Some States Saw 'Devastating' Increases

    Provisional overdose data for 2018 show a note of hope in an overall bleak picture. But in some states, the numbers actually got worse. What explains the disparities?
    by Selena Simmons-Duffin Jul 18, 2019 4 minutes
    Nationally, drug overdose deaths reached record levels in 2017, when a group protested in New York City on Overdose Awareness Day on August 31. Deaths appear to have declined slightly in 2018, based on provisional numbers, but nearly 68,000 people still died.

    Good news came out from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Wednesday: Preliminary data shows reported drug overdoses declined 4.2% in 2018, after rising precipitously for decades.

    "It looks like this is the first turnaround since the opioid crisis began," says Bertha Madras who served on President Trump's opioid commission, and is a professor of psychobiology at Harvard Medical School.

    She says it won't be entirely clear until the CDC finalizes the numbers but, "I think the tide could be turning."

    But not everyone was celebrating. Some states actually saw double-digit increases.

    "It's deflating," says. She's an associate research professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. "It's incredibly discouraging to see the increase in Missouri in 2018 that happened

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