Opioid overdose deaths have declined to pre-pandemic levels, according to newly released data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

National overdose death data updated Wednesday from the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics indicates that there were 49,629 reported opioid-related overdoses in the 12-month period from March 2024 to March 2025. That’s the lowest opioid overdoses have been since November 2019, when the agency reported nearly 49,500 opioid-related overdose deaths that year.

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Reported opioid overdoses have fallen approximately 41% since the peak in June 2023.

Overdose deaths from all forms of illicit and prescription drugs are still higher than pre-pandemic levels, with nearly 75,000 recorded for the year ending in March. But the overall trend is down.

In May, the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics reported that there were 30,000 fewer drug overdose deaths in 2024 than the year before, down 27% from 2023. That marked the largest one-year decline recorded in 45 years since the agency began recording such data.

Experts say there needs to be more research to understand the cause of the reduction in overdose deaths. 

Among the possible drivers of the change are the increased availability of the overdose-reversal agent naloxone, expanded addiction treatment, shifting drug use patterns among teens and young adults, and a growing awareness of the dangers of fentanyl.

Despite the drop, overdose deaths are still higher than pre-pandemic levels. There were 72,124 overdose death victims from all recorded categories of drugs in the 12-month period ending in January 2020. More than 70% of overdose deaths pre-pandemic were opioid-related. 

Overdose still remains the leading cause of death for people aged 18 to 44, the CDC said in a statement in May.

FDA requires overdose risk on opioid prescription labels

FDA REQUIRES OVERDOSE RISK ON OPIOID PRESCRIPTION LABELS

In July, the Food and Drug Administration announced that drug manufacturers would be required to change the labels of their prescription opioids to include information about the risk of addiction, misuse, and overdose for long-term use. 

Opioid prescription labels under the new rules will also be required to provide information about overdose reversal agents like naloxone.