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Drug overdose deaths rose nationwide by 29% during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, with Kentucky ranked third among states in the increase of such deaths, according to new federal data.
In Kentucky, long plagued by high rates of addiction, overdose deaths rose by 50% from September 2019 to September 2020, compared to the previous 12 months, according to preliminary figures released April 13 by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Kentucky had 1,956 overdose deaths over that 12-month period compared to 1,304 deaths the previous year, the CDC said, using preliminary data that could change. Indiana had 2,169 deaths in that period, a 32% increase.