Progress Is Not a Finish Line

According to newly released data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), drug overdose deaths in the United States fell by nearly 30,000 in 2024 — a drop of nearly 27% from the year before.

Every life saved should be celebrated with gratitude to the many who are working hard to end the effects of addiction. And yet, while it can be viewed as a promising sign that our nation may finally be turning a corner in its battle against the overdose crisis, don’t be fooled.

This is not a victory lap, but a wake up call in the face of still daunting numbers of overdose deaths. What is being called success today would have been called a crisis in 2019.

The Crisis Isn’t Over

Even with this decline, 80,391 lives were still lost to overdose in 2024 — 220 people a day and nine people an hour. That’s more than 14% higher than in 2019 and nearly five times higher than the death toll in 2000. And let’s not forget the all-time high spike in overdose to nearly 108,000 just three years ago in 2022.

While fentanyl-related deaths dropped significantly — from over 76,000 in 2023 to just over 48,000 in 2024 — deaths involving stimulants like methamphetamine and cocaine have continued to climb.

Alarmingly, we still have no approved medication to treat stimulant addiction. Overdose continues to be the leading cause of death for Americans ages 18 to 44, which is why it’s more important than ever to develop a national strategy to end the addiction crisis, not settle for marginal improvement.

This progress is fragile, and it is absolutely at risk.

Progress Fueled by Prevention

Experts agree that the recent decline in overdose deaths is likely driven by a constellation of public health strategies: increased availability of overdose reversal drugs like naloxone (Narcan), expanded access to evidence-based treatment, more widespread harm reduction efforts, and a greater national awareness about the dangers of fentanyl.

These are not accidental gains. They are the result of deliberate, hard-fought investments in prevention, treatment, education, and support.

As Dr. Matthew Christiansen, former director of West Virginia’s drug control policy, shared in a recent article in The New York Times, “We’ve invested hundreds of billions of dollars into addiction.” The payoff is finally starting to appear. This is the time to work harder to address what are still catastrophically high number of deaths and impact of addiction, not pull back.

We Need to Move Forward, Not Backward

Despite the encouraging numbers, the federal restructuring underway is disrupting critical federal programs and state and local programs that prevent and treat addiction and support mental health. We must ensure that the needs of communities are met and that this does not lead to more grieving families.

The cuts in spending and restructuring of administrative functions must be accompanied by a national public/private strategy to address addiction, a preventable and treatable condition that needs more attention, not less. Better solutions, not the status quo.

Transformational Change, Not Complacency

We cannot mistake a dip in the numbers for a destination reached. This is the first meaningful decline in more than a decade, and it comes after years of record-breaking loss. It is not a signal to scale back. It is a call to scale up.

We need continued investment in a full continuum of care—emergency response, quality treatment access, harm reduction, housing support, job training, and more. We need expanded resources in every community, tailored to its unique challenges. And we need bold, transformational change—not a retreat to complacency.

As Congresswoman Madeleine Dean, whose son is in recovery, told health officials during a recent congressional hearing: “You know these families. You are these families. Help us save more lives.”

Keep the Momentum Going

If we want to truly end the overdose crisis, we must protect and strengthen the programs that are working. And we must also identify transformational policies that will allow us to reduce the impact of addiction exponentially, not incrementally. We cannot afford to lose this momentum.

Every life saved is worth the investment. Every program that is working is a risk worth taking that we cannot afford to lose. Let’s turn this moment of hope into a movement of sustained action. We are grateful for every life that has been saved. And, because of that, we must not lose sight of the tragic scale that 80,000 annual deaths are to every family and to our nation as a whole.