U.S. Overdose Deaths Top 100,000 a Year as Opioid Crisis Worsens

The U.S. reached the grim milestone of 100,000 drug overdose deaths annually, a sign that the opioid crisis deepened at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

An estimated 100,306 Americans died from an overdose in the 12 months ended in April, a period that included months of lockdowns and business restrictions across the country, according to provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics. The toll is up 29% from the previous year.