Black residents accounted for the largest increase in opioid overdose death rates

BOSTON (June 22, 2023) - Opioid-related overdose deaths in Massachusetts increased by 2.5 percent in 2022 compared to 2021, with rates among Black, non-Hispanic residents making up the largest increase, according to preliminary data <https://www.mass.gov/lists/current-opioid-statistics> released today by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH).  
 
There were 2,357 confirmed and estimated opioid-related overdose deaths in 2022, surpassing the previous peak in 2021 by an estimated 57 deaths. Preliminary data also show there were 522 confirmed and estimated opioid-related overdose deaths in the first three months of 2023, a 7.7 percent decrease (an estimated 44 fewer deaths) from the same time period in 2022. 
 
Among non-Hispanic Black residents, the opioid-related overdose death rate increased by 42 percent, from 36.4 to 51.7 deaths per 100,000 residents from 2021 to 2022. When broken down by sex, the data show that non-Hispanic Black men had the highest opioid-related overdose death rate increase among males in all race/ethnicity groups, from 56.4 to 79.6 per 100,000 (a 41 percent increase). The rate for non-Hispanic Black women increased by 47 percent, from 17.4 to 25.5 per 100,000. 
 
The Healey-Driscoll Administration’s opioid prevention efforts are focused on providing communities with the resources needed to support a wide range of substance use programs, including those centered on behavioral health and homelessness. The Administration’s Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24) budget proposes investments of more than $600 million for substance addiction prevention and treatment programs, including critical funding for expanding outpatient services, increasing access to crisis stabilization services in communities and emergency departments, and strengthening the continuum of care in inpatient settings.