San Francisco sees 54% drop in overdose deaths in lowest count since 2020

San Francisco saw a 54% drop in overdose deaths in October 2024, compared with the same month a year earlier – the lowest monthly count since the city began publishing the figures in 2020, officials announced this week.

Last month, 32 people died of accidental overdoses in the city; there were 70 deaths in October 2023, according to a report of preliminary data from the city's office of the chief medical examiner. Overdose deaths have declined in recent months and are down more than 20% in the span between January and October this year, compared with the same period last year.

London Breed, the San Francisco mayor, attributed the progress to the city's expanded resources, access to medicines to help people break addiction and "targeted enforcement disrupting the fentanyl supply chain".

"It is remarkable and it is saving lives," Breed said at a news conference. "We've worked hard in San Francisco to try and combat these issues by providing a variety of not just services and support but also accountability."

San Francisco experienced its deadliest year for drug overdoses in 2023 as the powerful synthetic opioid fentanyl became more widely available in the US drug supply.

Last year, 810 people died from unintentional drug overdoses in the city, according to the office of the chief medical examiner. In August 2023 alone, someone died of an overdose every nine hours.

Overdose deaths in the US soared during the pandemic but are now declining. Over a 12-month period that ended on 30 June, there were about 97,000 overdose deaths, down 14% from the previous 12-month period, according to provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention .

"This is a pretty stunning and rapid reversal of drug overdose mortality numbers," said Brandon Marshall, a Brown University researcher who studies overdose trends.

Experts have not determined the exact reasons behind the decline, but they say it could be the result of more harm-reduction strategies, such as expanding the availability of the overdose-reversing drug naloxone (Narcan), as well as medication treatments.

The CDC director, Mandy Cohen, attributed the drop to increased awareness of fentanyl as well as the use of fentanyl-detecting test strips. Meanwhile, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) reported seeing a decrease in the potency of fentanyl pills.

The Associated Press contributed reporting