Hot Topics / Priority Issues

Pain in the Nation Update: Alcohol, Drug, and Suicide Deaths in 2018

Mixed Trends in 2018 as Overall Opioid Overdose Deaths Decline, But Deaths Involving Alcohol, Suicide, Synthetic Opioids, and Psychostimulants Continue to Rise

In 2018, more than 150,000 Americans died from alcohol, drugs, and suicide combined.1 The 2018 death rate—46.4 deaths per 100,000—is level with the 2017 rate of 46.6 per 100,000. This is the first time since 1999, when the current data began, that there hasn’t been an annual increase in the combined figure and the first time in years that there hasn’t been a sizable increase.

This report details updated rates of deaths related to drugs, alcohol, and suicide for 2018. Breaks down data by race, age, and regionally, including rural versus metro areas.