US President Donald Trump speaks before signing the “Halte All Lethal Trafficking of Fentanyl Act”, which strengthens prison terms for fentanyl traffickers, in the east house from the White House to Washington, DC, on July 16, 2025.
Andrew Caballero-Reynolds / AFP via Getty Images
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tilting legend
Andrew Caballero-Reynolds / AFP via Getty Images
Death deaths in the United States have plunged spectacularly and regularly since the summer of 2023, according to the latest preliminary data published by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Figures published this month by CDCs show mortal overdoses falling at 77,648 During the 12 -month period ending in March this year. This is the lowest count of the provisional predicted deaths of fentanyl and other street drugs since at least March 2020.
Despite the prolonged decline in overdose deaths, going back to the middle of the Biden administration, President Donald Trump continued to found a range of controversial policies – from commercial prices to more difficult criminal sanctions – on its assertion that fentanyl constitutes a growing threat to the Americans.
Last month, Trump signed the “Fentanyl Act of the judgment”, establishing minimum prison sentences for 10 years for people who are guilty of fentanyl traffic.
“We renew our wish to release America from this horrible plague. We will remove drug traffickers, pushers and hawkers from our streets”. Trump said at the signature ceremony. “We will not rest before having ended the epidemic of medication overdose.”
Trump also threatened military action against Mexico targeting drug cartels; Prices imposed on nations based in part on false or exaggerated allegations on their role in the milking of fentanyl; And wrongly wrongly fetanyl traffic on undocumented migrants.
According to Trump, his criminal emergency The campaign in Washington, DC, was also partly motivated by its desire to withdraw people dependent on fentanyl and other drugs from the visible areas of the national capital and to put them pressure to accept the treatment.
In an interview with NPR, Dr. Stephen Taylor, head of the American Society of Addiction Medicine, called these erroneous tactics: “(Dependence) is a chronic disease,” said Taylor. “This is not the kind of thing where you sweep people, you get them better and then they are healed forever.”
Critics of Trump’s approach to fentanyl’s struggle are also fearing the progress of reducing overdose death could be paralyzed by republican cuts in the financing of health and drug addiction programs.
Large urban states and small rural states see a spectacular improvement
But for the moment, the deaths of drugs continue to relax, many states having experienced improvements of 30 to 40% in only the past year.
In Virginia-Western, fatal overdoses went from 1,330 during the period from 12 months to March 2024 to 772 during the period from 12 months until March 2025. Provisional data suggest an astonishing drop of almost 42%.
In addition, states with a much higher population, including California, Florida and New York, see large decreases in deaths caused by Street drugs. In total, the deaths of drugs were relieved by about a third compared to the peak measured in 2023.
Public health and drug addiction experts continue to study Why overdoses fall so rush.
Some quote successful efforts to disrupt the fentanyl criminal supply chains. Others highlight rapid improvement in health care and treatment for people with dependence.
The latest CDC data also revises a previous report which seemed to show a small but disturbing increase in the deaths of drugs during the 12 -month period ending in January of this year. The new data suggests that fatal overdoses have now dropped consistently, without interruption, since the summer of 2023.
