Twenty-two percent of people who died of drug overdoses in 2022 had non-substance use related mental health disorders, according to an Aug. 29 analysis by HHS' Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
Using data from the CDC's State Unintentional Drug Overdose Reporting System, researchers analyzed the unintentional or undetermined intent drug overdose deaths in 43 states and Washington, D.C., in 2022.
About 108,000 people died of drug overdoses in 2022, and among them, around 23,760 (21.9%) reported mental health conditions not related to substance use. The most commonly reported disorders were depression (12.9%), anxiety (9.4%) and bipolar disorders (5.9%).
Approximately 80% of overdose deaths that year involved opioids, most frequently illegally manufactured fentanyl. Among those with mental health disorders, 15.3% involved benzodiazepines and 9.7% involved antidepressants, higher than among those without mental health conditions, which accounted for 3.3% and 8.5%, respectively.
The researchers concluded that expanding efforts to identify and address co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders and working to improve treatment retention and harm reduction services has the potential to reduce these deaths.