For the first time since 2018, the United States has seen a decrease in drug overdose deaths. The Center for Disease Control officials saw a nearly 15 percent drop in deaths from June 2023 through June 2024.

Experts are unsure as to what is causing the decline, which saw deaths decrease by some 14% between June 2023 and 2024.

As drug experts parse the data trying to understand the factors that could contribute to a sudden drop in overdose deaths, harm reductionists in western North Carolina work to stave off a possible spike in overdoses after the destruction brought by Hurricane Helene.

According to provisional data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, drug overdose deaths in the United States are close to hitting their lowest levels since 2020. The news comes as federal law enforcement officials say they’re making progress in the fight against fentanyl and the larger opioid crisis.

Overdose deaths increased in Nevada and four other states as national numbers declined, according to provisional data released by the CDC.

After decades of battling the opioid epidemic, U.S. health officials reported Wednesday that overdose deaths have now declined for the second year in

There were about 97,000 overdose deaths in the 12-month period that ended June 30, according to the CDC. It's a 14% decrease from the previous 12-month period.

U.S. drug overdose deaths are on pace to fall to the lowest levels since 2020, according to new provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a hopeful milestone amid efforts to stem the epidemic.