2,411 Drug Overdoses In Illinois During 2016: CDC

More than 63,600 Americans died of drug overdoses in 2016, and about two thirds of those deaths were attributed to opioid-related overdoses, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Thursday. The figures mark the deadliest year on record for overdose deaths in the United States. In Illinois, 2,411 people died over drug overdoses.

According to the CDC, the national rate for drug overdose deaths was 19.8 per 100,000. In 22 states, the rate was even higher. West Virginia (52), Ohio (39.1), New Hampshire (39) and Pennsylvania (37.9) had the highest drug overdose death rates. In Illinois, the rate was slightly lower than the national average, at 18.9 deaths per 100,000 residents.

Drug overdose death rates were significantly higher for men than women, though both groups have been affected by the increase. The CDC reported that for men the rate increased from 8.2 in 1999 to 26.2 in 2016 and for women the rate increased from 3.9 in 1999 to 13.4 in 2016. Rates of drug overdose deaths increased for all age groups the CDC studied and was highest among those aged 25-54.

The overdose death rate released by the CDC exceeds the peak number of deaths during the AIDS crisis in 1995, the peak number of gun-related deaths in 1993, the peak number of car crash deaths in 1972. The figure is also greater than the number of American soldiers who died during the Vietnam War.

Of the 42,249 opioid overdose deaths reported in 2016, the majority were due to synthetic opioids such as fentanyl (not including methadone). The CDC notes the rate of overdose deaths involving such substances nearly doubled in a single year (3.1 per 100,000 in 2015 to 6.2 in 2016). Over 14,000 overdose deaths attributed to drugs like hydrocodone and oxycodone while over 15,000 overdose deaths were due to heroin use.

On Thursday, five Illinois state's attorney joined together, filing a pair of lawsuits accusing drug companies like Johnson & Johnson and Purdue Pharma, the manufacturer of OxyContin, ofbeing the catalyst for the nation's opioid epidemic.

In October, President Trump declared the opioid crisis a public health emergency in the United States, but the declaration didn't bring any new money to fight the scourge. In late November, Trump appointed Kellyanne Conway to lead the administration's efforts to address the nation's opioid epidemic.

Another report released by the CDC on Thursday shows a decline in the life expectancy in 2016 for the second consecutive year, fueled by a rise in drug overdose deaths.

Preliminary data for drug overdose deaths in 2017 only shows the numbers going up.

By Feroze Dhanoa, Patch National Staff

Shannon Antinori, Patch National Staff, and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

Photo: In this June 6, 2017, file photo, a reporter holds up an example of the amount of fentanyl that can be deadly after a news conference about deaths from fentanyl exposure, at DEA Headquarters in Arlington, Va. The chief justice of the Massachusetts Trial Court told prosecutors she fears that allowing fentanyl and carfentanil into courtrooms as evidence puts people at risk even when the drugs are properly packaged. Some medical experts said a proposal to ban them from courtrooms appears to be driven by a misguided understanding of the real dangers of the substances. Photo by Jacquelyn Martin, File/Associated Press