Which RI city had the highest rate of fatal overdoses? Did more men or women die? A closer look at RI Health Department data.

PROVIDENCE – Gov. Dan McKee shared good news Wednesday when he announced Rhode Island’s 7% decrease last year in accidental overdoses, but he acknowledged that the state has “a lot more work to do” in addressing its overdose “epidemic.”

The number of people in Rhode Island who died from overdoses fell in 2023 for the first time in four years, but still, overdoses claimed 404 lives here last year.

Here’s a look at some of the data the Rhode Island Department of Health released in conjunction with Wednesday’s announcement by McKee and the Governor’s Overdose Task Force.

The overdose epidemic in Rhode Island, by the numbers

• Most people who died from a drug overdose were male, 69%. 
• Most overdoses were among Rhode Islanders ages 24 to 55. Rhode Islanders ages 35 to 44 saw the greatest increase in overdose deaths, 73.9 per 100,000.  
• In 2023, the rate of fatal overdoses decreased by 11% among Black (non-Hispanic) and 15% among Hispanic or Latino Rhode Islanders. The rate among white (non-Hispanic) Rhode Islanders remained similar to previous years. But the overdose rate among Black (non-Hispanic) Rhode Islanders remains higher than that of white Rhode Islanders. 
• Woonsocket had the highest rate of fatal overdoses, with 67.4 overdose deaths per 100,000 people. It was followed by Providence, 53.3 per 100,000; Pawtucket, 46.6 per 100,000; East Providence, 31.9 per 100,000; Cranston, 31.5 per 100,000; and Warwick, 24.1 per 100,000.
• Eight in 10 overdose deaths happened in private settings.
• Opioids and fentanyl are still driving the overdose epidemic in Rhode Island, the Health Department said. In 2023, 85% of overdoses involved any opioid, including fentanyl, while 78% involved fentanyl.
• 58% percent of the fatal overdoses involved cocaine. In those cases, the department said, it’s unclear whether the overdose victim knew they were using more than one substance.
• This was the first decrease in overdose deaths since 2018-2019. In 2018, 314 people died of overdose deaths, and the number fell to 308 in 2019. 
• The state Department of Health’s website shows that more than 400 people have died from overdoses in each of the last three years, 404 in 2023, 436 in 2022 and 435 in 2021.
• 3,471 people have died from overdoses in the 10 years between 2014 and 2023, according to figures on the website.
• 66 overdose deaths have been recorded so far this year, but it can take months to confirm overdose deaths because of the complex toxicology tests often required, the Health Department says.