2,250 Kentuckians died from drug overdoses in 2021, according to the latest state Drug Overdose Report. That’s a 14.5% increase over the prior year.
Officials pin the blame primarily on a rise in the use of a fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that accounted for 70% of the deaths in the report. Powerful and inexpensive meth is also helping to drive up the numbers.
Still, the rate of increase is lower than in 2020, when overdose deaths skyrocketed by nearly 50%.
The overdose report is released by the Kentucky Justice and Public Safety Cabinet and the Office of Drug Control Policy.
