(Wall Street Journal) – The U.S. is making progress against one of its most devastating public-health threats: drug overdoses.

Over the 12 months ended in October 2024, the country saw a 25% decline in overdose deaths compared with the same period the year prior, according to the latest preliminary estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 82,000 overdose deaths were reported.

The leading factor? A falling number of fatalities involving synthetic opioids, a drug class in which bootleg fentanyl is the big killer. (Read More)