Opioid overdose deaths have fallen in recent years, but will that last?

By Caleb Groves and Phoebe Quinton, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

ATLANTA — Deaths in Georgia from opioid overdoses fell by nearly a third from 2023 to 2024, a sign showing the state is making headway on the decades-long opioid crisis.

But that progress, reflected in provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, comes as federal cuts for drug treatment programs and Medicaid could disrupt access to treatment and reverse that downward trend.

The opioid crisis began decades ago, first with addictive painkillers and later with street drugs, such as heroin. And in 2013, overdose deaths involving fentanyl, often laced with other illicit drugs, and other synthetic opioids surged. Since then, the deadly synthetic opioid has played a significant role in fueling the cri