More than 106,000 people died of drug overdoses in the United States in 2021. That’s more than the number of people who died due to firearm-related injuries (48,830), falls (44,686) or motor vehicle crashes (42,939). These are all considered preventable causes of death, and as such, they are a public health problem. Reducing the toll requires research to identify risk factors and then the development of interventions that make the environment safer and discourage unsafe behavior.
Log in
Subscribers, enter your e-mail address for full access to the Science News archives and digital editions.
