After four decades of tracking upward, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported a decline of 2.8 percent in the number of overdose deaths for the 12-month period ending in March 2018. During that time an estimated 71,073 people died from overdoses.
A majority of the overdose deaths can be attributed to opioids, however the ongoing addiction crisis is not limited to opioids. Cocaine and methamphetamines are also leading causes of overdose deaths.
South Dakota had a 4.2 percent decline in overdose deaths, while Montana and Wyoming reported the biggest percentage drops with 25.2 and 19.5 percent respectively. Nebraska was on the opposite end of the spectrum with an increase of 47.7 percent in overdose deaths.
