Select Federal, State, and Tribal Legal Actions to Reduce Inappropriate - Opioid Prescribing and Increase Access to Naloxone

Introduction

The misuse of prescription and non-prescription opioids is one of the greatest public health threats facing the United States today. Drug overdose is a leading cause of injury-related death, with 70,237 drug overdose deaths in 2017.¹ Of those deaths, 47,600 (67.8 percent) involved opioids, with increased rates across states, age groups, race/ethnicity, and urbanization.² According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), overdose deaths involving prescription opioids were five times higher in 2017 when compared to 1999.³