CDC notes drop in Indiana overdose deaths, but says numbers underreported

ATLANTA (WISH) — Nebraska, Kansas, Indiana and Maine experienced declines of 15% or more in overdose deaths in 2023, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says.

The CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics, however, noted Indiana’s numbers were underreported due to incomplete data. The numbers were released earlier this week.

Indiana had a total of predicted overdose deaths in 2022 of 2,666. That figure dropped 17%, to 2,190, in 2023, the CDC says.

Gov. Eric Holcomb in a statement issued Thursday celebrated the percentage drop, noting it was the second-highest in the United States. Indiana, he says, has had a cabinet-level position for seven years that addresses overdose deaths.

A news release from the Republican governor’s office also notes Hoosiers since September could use a free, confidential service, Shatterproof Treatment Atlas, to find addiction treatment.

The release also said, in recent months, the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration dedicated over $30 million from national opioid settlement funds to help create 440 recovery residence beds, implement 15 “harm reduction street outreach teams,” and expand behavioral health initiatives in the state judicial and correctional systems.

Nationally, the CDC estimates, 107,543 drug overdose deaths happened in 2023, a decrease of 3% from the 111,029 deaths estimated in 2022. It was the first annual decrease in drug overdose deaths since 2018 in the country.