Sources:
Kaiser Family Foundation analysis of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Center for Health Statistics. Multiple Cause of Death 1999-2017 on CDC WONDER Online Database, released 2018. Data are from the Multiple Cause of Death Files, 1999-2017, as compiled from data provided by the 57 vital statistics jurisdictions through the Vital Statistics Cooperative Program. Accessed on January 10, 2019.
Notes (from source):
The National Vital Statistics System multiple cause-of-death mortality files were used to identify drug overdose deaths. Drug overdose deaths were classified using the International Classification of Disease, Tenth Revision (ICD-10), based on the ICD-10 underlying cause-of-death codes X40–44 (unintentional), X60–64 (suicide), X85 (homicide), or Y10–Y14 (undetermined intent). Among the deaths with drug overdose as the underlying cause, the type of opioid involved is indicated by the following ICD-10 multiple cause-of-death codes: opioids (T40.0, T40.1, T40.2, T40.3, T40.4, or T40.6); natural and semisynthetic opioids (T40.2); methadone (T40.3); synthetic opioids, other than methadone (T40.4); and heroin (T40.1).
Age-adjusted death rates were calculated by applying age-specific death rates to the 2000 U.S. standard population age distribution. Death Rates are deaths per 100,000 population (age-adjusted).
Deaths from illegally-made fentanyl cannot be distinguished from pharmaceutical fentanyl in the data source. For this reason, deaths from both legally prescribed and illegally produced fentanyl are included in these data.