NCJ Number
228357
Date Published
September 2009
Length
220 pages
Annotation
Findings are presented from data on drug-related deaths that occurred during 2007 and reported by participating medical examiners/corners (ME/Cs) to the Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN).
Abstract
Rate of drug-related deaths and drug-related suicide deaths per 100,000 populations for 2007 among 10 States participating in the Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) was highest in New Mexico with 21 deaths and 3.2 suicide deaths and Utah following behind with the second highest rate of drug-related deaths, 17.6 deaths and 2.0 suicide deaths. The lowest rate of drug-related deaths was Virginia with 5.9 deaths and 1.5 suicide deaths. Rate of drug-related deaths and percentage change between 2006 and 2007 was highest in Oklahoma with a 78.8 percent increase in 2007 followed by New Hampshire with 41.8 percent. The only State with a decrease in change rate was Vermont with -12.1 percent. DAWN is a public health surveillance system that monitors drug-related deaths referred to medical examiners/coroners (ME/Cs) in 63 selected metropolitan areas and 10 States (Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, Utah, Vermont, and Virginia). Findings in this report were reported by participating ME/Cs for 2007 and focused on two major categories of drug-related deaths, based on the manner of death as determined by the ME/C: drug-related deaths (natural or accidental deaths with drug involvement, homicide by drug, and deaths with drug involvement when manner of death denoted by the ME/C was "could not be determined" (CNBD)) and drug-related suicide. Figures, tables, and appendixes A-C