White House claims ‘largest decline’ in overdose deaths

Drug deaths are falling for the first time in recent history, representing a rare glimmer of hope after years of record overdose deaths. On Wednesday, Biden administration officials, to the surprise of some experts, tried to take credit for the drop.

The officials said the White House efforts to distribute naloxone have helped reverse 500,000 overdoses and attributed the overall improvement to the increased availability of addiction treatment medications and harm reduction services such as test strips used to detect fentanyl or xylazine .

“I’m happy to report that our efforts are working and our policies are saving lives,” Neera Tanden, director of the Domestic Policy Council, said at a news conference. The new data, she added, represents “the largest recorded reduction in overdose deaths ever, and this is no coincidence. The efforts made, the investments made and the policies introduced by this government are having a positive and real impact.”