Overdose deaths in U.S. have been dropping for over 2 years, the longest decline in decades | Fortune

U.S. overdose deaths fell through most of last year, suggesting a lasting improvement in an epidemic that had been worsening for decades.

Federal data released Wednesday showed that overdose deaths have been falling for more than two years — the longest drop in decades — but also that the decline was slowing.

And the monthly death toll is still not back to what it was before the COVID-19 pandemic, let alone where it was before the current overdose epidemic struck decades ago, said Brandon Marshall, a Brown University researcher who studies overdose trends.

“Overall I think this continues to be encouraging, especially since we’re seeing declines almost across the nation,” he said.

Overdose deaths fell in 45 states