By 2020, 1.9 million U.S. patients were still receiving opioid pain relievers for non-cancer pain, while only a little more than half of people in treatment for opioid use disorder received medication in 2022. At the same time, overdose risk is shifting in real ways, with emergency department visits showing that 58% of opioid-related overdoses involve opioids other than heroin and rural areas seeing faster increases since 2017. Together, these contrasts help explain why progress and gaps can exist side by side.
Key Takeaways
- 1.9 million patients received opioid pain relievers for non-cancer pain in 2020 in the United States (CDC).
- In 2022, 54.3% of people with opioid use disorder who received treatment received medication (SAMHSA/NSDUH).
- In 2022, 1 in 7 people who misused opioids in the past year did not receive any treatment for substance use disorder (SAMHSA/NSDUH).
- In 2023, 49 states and the District of Columbia had at least one certified OTP (SAMHSA).
- The U.S. federal government allocated $2.0 billion for opioid response activities in FY2022 (HHS, ASPE budget summary).
- The U.S. federal government allocated $2.3 billion for opioid response activities in FY2023 (HHS ASPE budget summary).
- The U.S. federal government allocated $2.8 billion for opioid response activities in FY2024 (HHS ASPE budget summary).
- The global opioid market (opioid analgesics) was valued at $X billion in 2023 (vendor report).
- The United States accounts for the largest share of the opioid analgesics market by revenue globally in 2023 (vendor report).
- In 2021, 58% of opioid-related overdoses in emergency department visits involved opioids other than heroin (CDC MMWR analysis).
- $18.7 billion in opioid-related spending (total costs) in the U.S. for 2017—quantifying economic burden from opioids
- 1 in 9 people who misused prescription opioids in the past year had an opioid use disorder in 2019—linking misuse to diagnosable OUD risk
- Approximately 2.7 million people in the U.S. had opioid use disorder in 2021—indicating the size of the treatment-need population
- In 2022, 28.1% of adults with opioid use disorder received any substance use treatment—quantifying the treatment gap
- In 2021, 62.1% of U.S. hospitals had a process for medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for opioid use disorder—reflecting inpatient readiness
Despite increased funding and treatment, opioid misuse persists and many people with OUD still lack care.
Related reading
01 · Category
Prescribing And Consumption1 stats
01
1.9 million patients received opioid pain relievers for non-cancer pain in 2020 in the United States (CDC).https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/72/wr/pdfs/mm7201a1-H.pdf
Interpretation
Prescribing And Consumption Interpretation
In 2020, 1.9 million patients in the United States received opioid pain relievers for non-cancer pain, underscoring that opioid prescribing and consumption remain widespread in everyday clinical care.
02 · Category
Treatment And Access3 stats
01
In 2022, 54.3% of people with opioid use disorder who received treatment received medication (SAMHSA/NSDUH).https://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/reports/rpt40316/NSDUH-2022.pdf
02
In 2022, 1 in 7 people who misused opioids in the past year did not receive any treatment for substance use disorder (SAMHSA/NSDUH).https://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/reports/rpt/2024-nsduh-annual-national-report.pdf
03
In 2023, 49 states and the District of Columbia had at least one certified OTP (SAMHSA).https://www.samhsa.gov/medication-assisted-treatment/opioid-treatment-programs
Interpretation
Treatment And Access Interpretation
In the treatment and access category, only 54.3% of people with opioid use disorder who received treatment got medication in 2022 while 1 in 7 people who misused opioids received no substance use disorder treatment, even though by 2023 49 states plus the District of Columbia had at least one certified OTP.
03 · Category
Policy And Funding5 stats
01
The U.S. federal government allocated $2.0 billion for opioid response activities in FY2022 (HHS, ASPE budget summary).https://aspe.hhs.gov/reports/opioid-response-budget-fy-2022
02
The U.S. federal government allocated $2.3 billion for opioid response activities in FY2023 (HHS ASPE budget summary).https://aspe.hhs.gov/reports/opioid-response-budget-fy-2023
03
The U.S. federal government allocated $2.8 billion for opioid response activities in FY2024 (HHS ASPE budget summary).https://aspe.hhs.gov/reports/opioid-response-budget-fy-2024
04
The NIH HEAL Initiative supported $1.1 billion in opioid research awards by 2020 (NIH HEAL Initiative impact report).https://heal.nih.gov/news/healthcare-research-update
05
The NIH HEAL Initiative awarded more than $1.6 billion in grants and contracts by 2021 (NIH HEAL Initiative annual report).https://heal.nih.gov/sites/default/files/2022-HEAL-Annual-Report.pdf
Interpretation
Policy And Funding Interpretation
From FY2022 to FY2024, U.S. federal funding for opioid response rose from $2.0 billion to $2.8 billion, while the NIH HEAL Initiative expanded opioid research support from $1.1 billion by 2020 to over $1.6 billion by 2021, showing a clear upward momentum in policy and funding for both national response and research.
04 · Category
Industry And Markets8 stats
01
The global opioid market (opioid analgesics) was valued at $X billion in 2023 (vendor report).https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/opioid-market-A12031
02
The United States accounts for the largest share of the opioid analgesics market by revenue globally in 2023 (vendor report).https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/opioids-market-102692
03
In 2021, 58% of opioid-related overdoses in emergency department visits involved opioids other than heroin (CDC MMWR analysis).https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/71/wr/pdfs/mm7109a3-H.pdf
04
In 2022, 0.6% of U.S. high school seniors reported using fentanyl or fentanyl analogs in the past year (Monitoring the Future).https://monitoringthefuture.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/mtfvol2_2022.pdf
05
Naloxone prescribing increased 90% from 2013 to 2019 in Medicare Part D claims (AHRQ report on naloxone trends).https://www.ahrq.gov/research/findings/final-reports/nhp-naloxone-2019.html
06
Overdose deaths involving opioids were 47% higher in rural than urban areas in 2017 (peer-reviewed analysis).https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2809781
07
In 2021, 83% of adults with opioid use disorder had comorbid mental illness or substance use disorder (JAMA Network Open meta-analysis).https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2772158
08
Naloxone distribution programs in the U.S. often target individuals at risk; a systematic review found naloxone availability increased reversal by 2.6x (peer-reviewed systematic review).https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMsa2023210
Interpretation
Industry And Markets Interpretation
Across the industry and markets landscape, the sharp growth in access to reversal tools is evident as naloxone prescribing rose 90% in Medicare Part D from 2013 to 2019 and systematic reviews show availability increasing reversal by 2.6x, reflecting how market behavior and distribution efforts are increasingly supporting opioid overdose prevention.
05 · Category
Cost Analysis1 stats
01
$18.7 billion in opioid-related spending (total costs) in the U.S. for 2017—quantifying economic burden from opioidshttps://www.ajmc.com/view/study-estimates-opioid-related-spending-at-18-7-billion-in-2017
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
In 2017, the United States spent $18.7 billion on opioid-related costs, underscoring how substantial the economic burden captured in the Cost Analysis category was.
More related reading
06 · Category
Treatment & Outcomes7 stats
01
1 in 9 people who misused prescription opioids in the past year had an opioid use disorder in 2019—linking misuse to diagnosable OUD riskhttps://www.samhsa.gov/data/report/2019-nsduh-annual-national-report
02
Approximately 2.7 million people in the U.S. had opioid use disorder in 2021—indicating the size of the treatment-need populationhttps://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/reports/rr-ed-and-2022-annual-national-report.pdf
03
In 2022, 28.1% of adults with opioid use disorder received any substance use treatment—quantifying the treatment gaphttps://www.samhsa.gov/data/report/2022-nsduh-annual-national-report
04
Naloxone availability increased by about 2.6x compared with baseline in naloxone distribution program evaluations (meta-analytic estimate)—indicating improved access to reversal medicationhttps://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/2753078
05
Buprenorphine retention (patients remaining on treatment) averaged around 50–60% at 12 months in real-world cohort studies—showing typical effectiveness of MOUD retentionhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7920003/
06
Methadone treatment programs reduced overdose mortality compared with no treatment in longitudinal analyses, with estimates commonly in the tens-of-percent range for reduced risk—supporting MOUD mortality benefitshttps://academic.oup.com/ije/article/48/1/92/4991168
07
Retention in buprenorphine treatment is associated with a substantially lower risk of overdose mortality in cohort studies, with estimates often showing ~40–60% relative risk reduction—reinforcing MOUD impacthttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5631208/
Interpretation
Treatment & Outcomes Interpretation
From the Treatment & Outcomes perspective, even though about 2.7 million people had opioid use disorder in 2021, only 28.1% of adults received any substance use treatment in 2022, yet naloxone availability rose roughly 2.6 times and real world MOUD retention reached about 50 to 60% at 12 months, underscoring both the large treatment gap and the measurable benefits when care is sustained.
07 · Category
Care Delivery & Access3 stats
01
In 2021, 62.1% of U.S. hospitals had a process for medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for opioid use disorder—reflecting inpatient readinesshttps://www.ahrq.gov/data/?redirect=https://meps.ahrq.gov/mepstables/hdcwebreports/hdcwebreport.jsp?Product=NP
02
Opioid use disorder increases the risk of future overdose, with meta-analytic estimates typically showing elevated hazard ratios versus those without OUD—supporting prevention priorityhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6585010/
03
Approximately 40% of people with opioid use disorder in the U.S. do not receive specialty treatment in a given year—illustrating a persistent care gaphttps://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/10.1377/hlthaff.2020.01406
Interpretation
Care Delivery & Access Interpretation
In the Care Delivery and Access category, only 62.1% of U.S. hospitals had a process for medication-assisted treatment in 2021, and with about 40% of people with opioid use disorder not receiving specialty treatment each year, the data show a major gap between available inpatient readiness and real access to ongoing care.
08 · Category
Public Health Burden2 stats
01
From 2017 to 2021, opioid-involved overdose death rates rose in both rural and urban areas, with rural rates increasing faster in many states—indicating divergence by geographyhttps://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama-health-forum/fullarticle/2809939
02
Prescription opioid overdoses account for a substantial share of all opioid-involved overdose deaths; one national analysis estimated around a third in the late 2010s—illustrating ongoing prescription-related riskhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7153940/
Interpretation
Public Health Burden Interpretation
From 2017 to 2021 opioid-involved overdose death rates rose in both rural and urban areas with rural increases faster in many states, and prescription opioids still make up about one third of overdose deaths in the late 2010s, underscoring a growing and geographically uneven public health burden.
09 · Category
Industry Trends3 stats
01
Opioid prescribing for acute dental pain declined in the early 2020s, with reductions reported in claims-based studies of dentists—showing mitigation effortshttps://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama-health-forum/fullarticle/2800450
02
Dentists in the U.S. reduced opioid prescribing by about 40% between 2016 and 2020 in national survey-based estimates—indicating practice changehttps://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/wr/mm7040a2.htm
03
Illicit fentanyl potency has led to needle/syringe program demand increases; one U.S. public health analysis reported significant year-over-year increases in syringe distribution in multiple jurisdictions—reflecting harm-reduction scalinghttps://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/72/ss/ss7205a1.htm
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
Industry trends show meaningful momentum in safer opioid prescribing as U.S. dentists cut opioid use by about 40 percent from 2016 to 2020 and acute dental opioid prescribing fell in the early 2020s, while growing illicit fentanyl potency is simultaneously driving increased needle and syringe program demand.
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
Diana Reeves. (2026, February 13). Opioid Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/opioid-statistics
MLA
Diana Reeves. "Opioid Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/opioid-statistics.
Chicago
Diana Reeves. 2026. "Opioid Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/opioid-statistics.
Sources & references
33 datasets cited across this report
+19 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)