According to a federal report that was released on Tuesday and analyzed overdose data by race, age and income, people of color were the hardest hit by the epidemic.
According to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, overdose deaths increased by 30 percent from the year before. The increase in deaths among black people was more than the increase in deaths among white people and Hispanic people. The deaths of American Indians and Alaska Natives went up.
Black people died at a rate of 39 deaths per 100,000, compared with 31 deaths for white people, 36 deaths for American Indian and Alaska Native people, and 21 deaths for Hispanic people.
According to the acting principal deputy director of the C.D.C., the disproportionate increase in overdose death rates among Blacks and American Indians may be due to health inequalities.
Data from Washington, D.C. and 25 states were used to create the racial breakdown. The study did not include data from states with high overdose death rates, such as Florida, New York and Michigan. C.D.C. researchers said that the trends they saw mirrored the trends in the country.
Since 2020, overdose deaths have risen, but the rate has slowed.
When age was taken into account, the impact was even more striking. Black men died from overdoses at a higher rate than white men. The overdose death rate for black people in the age group of 15 to 24 increased from the year before.
Some of the deaths were caused by the combination of other drugs with the opioids, such as meth and cocaine, according to the authors of the study.
The spiral was worsened by the Pandemic. Drug use became a distraction and solace for people who were isolated from social services, peers, family and treatment centers.
The racial divide in access to treatment for substance abuse was shown to have been relieved. Black people who received treatment for substance abuse were less likely to receive treatment than white people who received treatment.
The chasm was deepened by income inequality.
The report states that overdose death rates are higher in counties with more treatment services. The impact was different depending on race. The rate in 2020 in counties with at least one opiate treatment program was more than twice that in counties that did not.
Black people died from overdoses at a higher rate than white people in counties with more treatment options.
The lead author of the report, a health scientist with the Division of Overdose Prevention at the C.D.C., said that the availability of services doesn't mean they are accessible. Fear of being stigmatized and a pervasive distrust of the health care system are significant factors.
It was noted in the report that access to a treatment center in a dense population center would be difficult for people in far flung areas. It's difficult to say if a county with high rates of drug abuse and overdose deaths is more likely to have a clinic.
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