Skyrocketing Overdose Rates During Pandemic Reflect Widening Racial Disparities

A new federal report found that fatal overdoses jumped 44% among blacks, double the increase among whites, from 2019 as of the end of 2020.

The devastating impact of the pandemic on drug overdose deaths in the United States has hit people of color the hardest, with rates among black youth rising fastest, according to a federal report released Tuesday that analyzed overdose data by race, age and income.

Overall , overdose deaths jumped 30% from 2019 to 2020, the report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. Deaths among blacks increased by 44%, about double the increase in deaths among whites (22%) or Hispanics (21%). American Indian and Alaska Native deaths increased by 39%.

Measured as a part of the population, in 2020, deaths among blacks were higher than any other race or ethnicity group - 39 per 100,000, compared to 31 for whites, 36 for American Indians and Alaska Natives, and 21 for Hispanics. among Blacks, Native Americans and Alaska Natives may be partly due to health inequities, such as unequal access to addiction treatment and treatment biases,” said Dr. Debra Houry, Director Acting Senior Deputy C.D.C.

The racial eruptions were based on data from Washington, D.C., and 25 states that had conducted scans. The study included data from some states where overdose death rates have increased, such as Georgia, Kentucky and Maine, but not others with high rates, such as Florida, New York and Michigan. CDC. the researchers said that, nonetheless, the trends they saw in this data reflected statistical racial eruptions across the country.

Across the country, deaths by overdose have continued to increase since 2020, although the rate has slowed somewhat.

The impact on different races became even more striking when age was taken into account. In 2020, the overdose death rate for men 65 and older was nearly seven times higher for black men than for white men. Among black people aged 15 to 24, the overdose death rate increased by 86% between 2019 and 2020.

The study authors said that deaths were largely due to illicitly produced fentanyl, with some triggered by combining other drugs with opioids, such as methamphetamine and cocaine.

The pandemic exacerbated the spiral, the authors said. With people young and old isolated from social services, peers, family and treatment centers, not to mention a drop in income for many, drugs have become a distraction and a solace.

< p class="css-at9mc1 evys1bk0" >Results highlighted the racial divide in access to drug treatment. Although the data showed that treatment was rare among all those who died, the proportion of people who received drug treatment was lowest among blacks (8.3%), about half that of whites who had sought treatment and later died.

Income inequality has also deepened this chasm, according to the report.

In ways perhaps Surprisingly, the report indicates that overdose death rates were generally higher in counties with more treatment services and mental health care providers. Again, the impact varied by race. Among American Indians and Alaska Natives and Blacks, for example, the rate in 2020 in counties with at least one opioid treatment program was more than double that of counties without such services. .

Among counties with relatively more treatment options than others, overdose death rates from 2019 to 2020 increased by 49% among blacks ...