BARNSTABLE – According to preliminary data released recently by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, opioid-related overdose deaths decreased slightly in the 12-month period ending September 30, compared to the same period last year.
Between October 1, 2022, and September 30, there were 2,323 confirmed and estimated opioid-related overdose deaths, eight fewer than the same time last year.
Massachusetts had a record 2,359 opioid-related overdose deaths in all of 2022, and since 2000 there have been more than 25,000 deaths in the state.
The preliminary data shows that fentanyl was detected in 93 percent of all opioid-related overdose deaths in the first three months of this year.
“The overdose crisis continues to devastate our communities and families throughout Massachusetts. When I read these numbers, I’m heartbroken to think about the lives connected to each one and their loved ones who are enduring this tragic loss,” said Governor Maura Healey.
“Our administration is combating this crisis by continuing to invest in community support aimed at destigmatizing substance use disorder and reducing the negative effects of substance use,” Healey said.
The rate of opioid-related overdose deaths in Massachusetts has increased at a rate of 3 percent per year on average from 2015 to 2022 with males comprising 72 percent of the deaths in the first nine months of 2023.
Just under 50 percent of all opioid-related overdose deaths in the first nine months of 2023 were among people aged 25-44.
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