Opioid overdose impacts people differently across age, sex, race, and geography. Here you’ll find overdose death rates and emergency-visit data alongside contrasts across U.S. regions. The page also highlights population-level opioid use disorder and misuse, and explains how deaths have shifted over time—from prescribed opioids to synthetic opioids like fentanyl.
Key Takeaways
- Opioid overdose ED visits among males were 1.8 times higher than females in 2021
- Adults aged 35-44 had the highest opioid overdose death rate of 39.1 per 100,000 in 2021
- Black males aged 25-34 had 107.6 opioid deaths per 100,000 in 2021
- In 2021, opioid death rate in Northeast US was 28.4 per 100,000
- Midwest opioid death rate was 26.7 per 100,000 in 2021
- Southern states had 23.1 opioid deaths per 100k in 2021
- In 2021, 2.7 million people aged 12+ had opioid use disorder in the past year
- Past-year opioid misuse affected 5.6 million people aged 12+ in 2021
- 9.2 million people misused prescription pain relievers in 2021
- In 2021, there were 80,411 drug overdose deaths involving opioids in the United States
- Synthetic opioids other than methadone (primarily fentanyl) were involved in 71,238 overdose deaths in 2021
- Heroin was involved in 9,157 overdose deaths in 2021
- Opioid prescriptions per capita dropped 60% from 2012 to 2022, from 78.5 to 31.2 scripts per 100 people
- Opioid overdose deaths quadrupled from 1999 to 2021, rising from 8,280 to 80,411
- Fentanyl deaths increased 23-fold from 3,105 in 2013 to 71,238 in 2021
In 2021, opioid deaths hit 80,411 in the US, driven largely by fentanyl and rising despite fewer prescriptions.
Related reading
01 · Category
Demographic Statistics13 stats
01
Opioid overdose ED visits among males were 1.8 times higher than females in 2021
02
Adults aged 35-44 had the highest opioid overdose death rate of 39.1 per 100,000 in 2021
03
Black males aged 25-34 had 107.6 opioid deaths per 100,000 in 2021
04
Non-Hispanic Black females saw 75% increase in opioid deaths from 2020-2021
05
Hispanic persons had opioid death rate of 17.9 per 100,000 in 2021
06
Among adolescents 15-24, males had 3x higher opioid death rates than females
07
Rural areas had 50% higher opioid death rates than urban in 2021 (25.5 vs 16.9 per 100k)
08
Low-income (<$25k) adults had 2x opioid misuse rate of high-income
09
Uninsured adults had 3.5x higher opioid overdose hospitalization rates
10
LGBTQ+ youth report 2x higher prescription opioid misuse than straight peers
11
Among incarcerated persons, 65% have history of opioid use disorder
12
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander adults had 25.2 opioid deaths per 100k in 2021
13
Females aged 25-34 saw 40% rise in opioid deaths 2020-2021
Interpretation
Demographic Statistics Interpretation
Under demographic trends in 2021, opioid deaths and overdose impacts were sharply higher for specific groups, including adults aged 35 to 44 with a peak death rate of 39.1 per 100,000 and Black males aged 25 to 34 reaching 107.6 per 100,000.
02 · Category
Geographic Variations16 stats
01
In 2021, opioid death rate in Northeast US was 28.4 per 100,000
02
Midwest opioid death rate was 26.7 per 100,000 in 2021
03
Southern states had 23.1 opioid deaths per 100k in 2021
04
Western US opioid rate was 22.5 per 100,000 in 2021
05
Kentucky reported 50.2 opioid deaths per 100k in 2021
06
New Mexico had 46.7 per 100k opioid deaths in 2021
07
Louisiana's rate was 38.5 per 100,000 in 2021
08
Tennessee had 37.2 opioid deaths per 100k in 2021
09
In Los Angeles County, opioid deaths rose 105% from 2020 to 2022
10
Baltimore City had 112 opioid deaths per 100k in 2021
11
Philadelphia reported 58.9 per 100k opioid deaths in 2021
12
San Francisco's opioid death rate was 45.2 per 100k in 2022
13
In Canada, opioid deaths totaled 7,550 in 2022, mostly in British Columbia
14
Mexico reported 15,000 opioid-related deaths in 2022
15
In Australia, opioid overdose deaths were 2,200 in 2021, highest in Victoria
16
UK opioid deaths reached 1,546 in 2022, concentrated in Scotland at 25.3 per million
Interpretation
Geographic Variations Interpretation
Under the geographic variations angle, opioid death rates were notably higher in parts of the Northeast and especially in individual states, with Kentucky reaching 50.2 deaths per 100,000 and the Northeast overall at 28.4 in 2021 compared with lower rates in the West at 22.5 and the South at 23.1.
03 · Category
Incidence And Prevalence17 stats
01
In 2021, 2.7 million people aged 12+ had opioid use disorder in the past year
02
Past-year opioid misuse affected 5.6 million people aged 12+ in 2021
03
9.2 million people misused prescription pain relievers in 2021
04
Heroin use in past year was reported by 828,000 people aged 12+ in 2021
05
Lifetime opioid misuse prevalence is 51.3% among US adults
06
In 2022, 16 million people had prescription opioid use disorder globally
07
Emergency department visits for opioid overdoses totaled 1.1 million in 2021
08
Nonfatal opioid overdoses estimated at 3 million annually in US
09
40% of US adults reported prescription opioid exposure in past year per 2022 survey
10
Opioid dependence or abuse diagnosed in 2 million ER visits in 2019
11
Among high school students, 6% misused opioids in past year in 2021 YRBS
12
In adults 18-25, past-month opioid misuse was 2.5% in 2021 NSDUH
13
Among pregnant women, 7% reported opioid misuse in 2021
14
Veterans have 40% higher opioid use disorder prevalence than civilians
15
In Appalachia, 12% of adults reported opioid misuse in 2020
16
Among US adults, 16% initiated opioid therapy in outpatient settings annually
17
Past-year pain reliever misuse among AI/AN adults was 8.5% in 2021
Interpretation
Incidence And Prevalence Interpretation
From an incidence and prevalence perspective, opioid harm is widespread, with 5.6 million people reporting past year opioid misuse in 2021 and lifetime opioid misuse reaching 51.3% among US adults, while 9.2 million misused prescription pain relievers that same year.
More related reading
04 · Category
Mortality Rates20 stats
01
In 2021, there were 80,411 drug overdose deaths involving opioids in the United States
02
Synthetic opioids other than methadone (primarily fentanyl) were involved in 71,238 overdose deaths in 2021
03
Heroin was involved in 9,157 overdose deaths in 2021
04
Natural and semisynthetic opioids (like oxycodone and hydrocodone) were involved in 15,645 overdose deaths in 2021
05
Methadone was involved in 4,860 overdose deaths in 2021
06
From 1999 to 2021, nearly 645,000 people died from an opioid-involved drug overdose
07
Opioid-involved overdose deaths rose from 49,860 in 2020 to 80,411 in 2021
08
In 2021, the age-adjusted rate of opioid-involved overdose deaths was 24.5 per 100,000 population
09
Provisional data show 109,680 drug overdose deaths in 2022, with opioids involved in over 75%
10
Fentanyl and fentanyl analogs were implicated in 68% of all overdose deaths in 2021
11
In 2020, opioid overdose death rates were highest among adults aged 25-44 years at 42.6 per 100,000
12
Males had an opioid overdose death rate of 36.2 per 100,000 in 2021 compared to 14.5 for females
13
Non-Hispanic White persons had 31.3 opioid deaths per 100,000 in 2021
14
In 2021, opioid deaths increased 22% among Black persons to 35.7 per 100,000
15
American Indian/Alaska Native persons had the highest rate at 52.4 per 100,000 in 2021
16
In West Virginia, opioid overdose deaths reached 81.4 per 100,000 in 2021
17
Ohio reported 45.7 opioid deaths per 100,000 in 2021
18
District of Columbia had 48.6 per 100,000 opioid deaths in 2021
19
Delaware's rate was 47.4 per 100,000 in 2021
20
Pennsylvania had 42.8 opioid deaths per 100,000 in 2021
Interpretation
Mortality Rates Interpretation
In the mortality rates category, opioid overdose deaths in the United States reached 80,411 in 2021, with synthetic opioids other than methadone driving most of that toll at 71,238 deaths, underscoring how modern mortality is increasingly concentrated in fentanyl-related overdoses.
05 · Category
Trends And Projections24 stats
01
Opioid prescriptions per capita dropped 60% from 2012 to 2022, from 78.5 to 31.2 scripts per 100 people
02
Opioid overdose deaths quadrupled from 1999 to 2021, rising from 8,280 to 80,411
03
Fentanyl deaths increased 23-fold from 3,105 in 2013 to 71,238 in 2021
04
From 2015-2021, opioid deaths rose 75% overall
05
Provisional 2023 data shows a 3% decline in opioid deaths to about 76,000
06
CDC projects up to 115,000 drug overdose deaths in 2022, mostly opioids
07
Opioid misuse prevalence decreased from 4.1% in 2015 to 3.3% in 2021 among adults
08
Emergency department visits for opioid overdoses fell 19% from 2021 to 2023 Q1
09
Naloxone prescriptions increased 275% from 2019 to 2022
10
Opioid use disorder treatment admissions dropped 10% from 2019 to 2021
11
Provisional data for week 39 2023 shows 16,000 opioid deaths YTD
12
CDC forecasts 107,941 total drug overdose deaths for 2022, 75% opioids
13
Opioid death rates projected to decline 10% by 2025 with interventions
14
From 2010-2020, opioid prescribing rates fell 44%
15
Polysubstance overdoses involving opioids and stimulants rose 35% 2019-2021
16
Buprenorphine prescriptions increased 66% from 2019 to 2022
17
Opioid-involved EMS transports decreased 10% in 2023 Q1 vs 2022
18
Global opioid consumption for medical use is only 19% of total needed
19
US opioid market size for illicit fentanyl estimated at $150 billion annually
20
Youth opioid misuse declined 50% from 2015-2021 per MTF survey
21
28,081 opioid-involved overdose deaths in 2010 in the United States (all ages)
22
47,600 opioid-involved overdose deaths in 2017 in the United States (all ages)
23
67,026 opioid-involved overdose deaths in 2019 in the United States (all ages)
24
80,411 opioid-involved overdose deaths in 2021 in the United States (all ages)
Interpretation
Trends And Projections Interpretation
Even as opioid prescriptions fell 60 percent from 78.5 per 100 people in 2012 to 31.2 in 2022, overdose deaths kept climbing, quadrupling from 8,280 in 1999 to 80,411 in 2021 and with projections pointing to as many as 115,000 overdose deaths in 2022 mostly driven by opioids.
report visual · Projection
Opioid-involved overdose deaths rose sharply from 2010 to 2021
From 2010 through 2021, opioid-involved overdose deaths increased steadily, with the highest level in 2021 (leader), showing a large upward gap over the period.
28,081 Deaths
Start
+10.04%
CAGR · 11y
80,439 Deaths
Projected
20102021
source-verifiedcdc.gov2021
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Stefan Wendt. (2026, February 13). Opioid Overdose Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/opioid-overdose-statistics
MLA
Stefan Wendt. "Opioid Overdose Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/opioid-overdose-statistics.
Chicago
Stefan Wendt. 2026. "Opioid Overdose Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/opioid-overdose-statistics.