LOS ANGELES, Calif. — Drug overdose deaths in Los Angeles County have plateaued in 2023, marking the first time fatal overdoses have plateaued in a decade. Health officials say that’s a sign their efforts are working, but more work is needed to address the ongoing crisis.
The figures come from an analysis by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health released Monday, which found that drug-related overdose and poisoning deaths fell slightly from 3,220 in 2022 to 3,092 last year.
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Health officials said the number of deaths has fallen for the first time since 2014 after a more than 300% surge in the past decade.
“Study findings show that with sustained prevention, harm reduction and treatment approaches, we can reverse the decline in overdoses. That said, overdoses and poisonings remain at record highs and we have much more work to do to ensure continued declines in deaths. I urge everyone to access the overdose prevention medication naloxone and have the courage to seek help for their drug use,” DPH Director Barbara Ferrer said in a statement.
According to DPH, methamphetamine is the leading cause of overdose and poisoning deaths in Los Angeles County at roughly the same rate, but fentanyl remains the leading cause of overdose and poisoning deaths.
The highest rate of overdose and poisoning deaths are among people between the ages of 26 and 64. Black people make up a disproportionate number of these deaths, but Latino and white people also suffer the highest numbers, according to the DPH.
Last year marked the first time that the number of Latinos who died from fentanyl-related overdoses exceeded the number of white people.
DPH said the county has increased funding for substance use prevention by 260 percent, funding for treatment by 275 percent and funding for harm reduction services by 500 percent in response to the overdose crisis.