Drugs

NPR - Drug overdose deaths in the U.S. appear to be plummeting for the first time in decades. Data from the CDC shows a more than 10% drop in deaths. Some experts say the trend, which began late last year, is accelerating and could mean thousands fewer drug deaths each year. NPR's Brian Mann spoke with people experiencing addiction for an NPR exclusive report. Read their stories here and learn more about the drop in deaths. “To be clear, nobody thinks the problem is solved,” Mann says. Though deaths appear to be dropping, there are still around 100,000 fatal overdoses a year. Rahul Gupta, the White House drug czar, believes this shift is because public health and addiction treatment programs are finally working. He credits the spread of overdose reversal drug naloxone, also known as Narcan. Some experts say public health measures alone don’t explain the significant drop in drug-related deaths. Researchers are racing to understand the change so they can build on it and keep it going.