Fatal Overdoses
The following section features overdose death data from Philadelphia's Medical Examiner's Office. Unintentional overdose deaths include deaths that were determined to be accidental drug-related deaths by Philadelphia's Medical Examiner's Office. Philadelphia's Medical Examiner's Office examines all overdose deaths that occur within Philadelphia. This data does not include overdose deaths of Philadelphia residents that occurred outside of Philadelphia.
Philadelphia County Deaths by Year
Unintentional overdose death data come from Philadelphia's Medical Examiner's Office. Death investigations and overdose death records are often delayed. This data does not include suicides, homicides, or death where the manner is undetermined. Calculation of rates include Philadelphia residents only.
Overdose deaths have increased over the last decade. The large percent increase between 2016 and 2017 may be attributed to the opioid prescribing guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the resulting change in the availability of prescription opioids. In 2022, there was a record high of 1,413 overdose deaths in Philadelphia County, an 11% increase from the previous year.
Drug Groups
Opioids include: fentanyl and fentanyl analogs, heroin, and prescription opioids. Stimulants include: cocaine, methamphetamine, and pharmaceutical amphetamine.
Historically, most unintentional overdose deaths involved opioids without stimulants. However, deaths involving stimulants, including those with and without the presence of opioids, have largely attributed to the rise of overdose deaths in Philadelphia since 2017. Deaths involving both opioids and stimulants made up 55% of overdose deaths in Philadelphia in 2022.
Drugs Involved
Drug involvement is not mutually exclusive; one decedent may have had more than one drug detected in toxicology.
Fentanyl
Of note, fentanyl has nearly replaced heroin in Philadelphia's illicit drug market.
Age Group
Calculation of rates include Philadelphia residents only.
Unintentional overdose deaths are most common among individuals aged 45-64, with 50% of deaths occurring among this age group in 2022. The increase in overdose deaths among those 45+ may be attributed to stimulant-involved deaths, particularly among non-Hispanic Black Male decedents.
Birth Sex
Calculation of rates include Philadelphia residents only. Philadelphia's Medical Examiner's Office categorizes decedents by sex at birth, not gender.
Race / Ethnicity
Calculation of rates include Philadelphia residents only. Individuals of other race/ethnicity groups are excluded from this graph due to low counts.
Unintentional overdose deaths have historically been highest among non-Hispanic White individuals. In 2021, the number of overdose deaths among non-Hispanic Black individuals surpassed the number of overdose deaths among non-Hispanic White individuals. This trend has continued into 2022.
Zip Code
Counts are displayed by Incident Zip Code, which is the Zip Code where overdoses occurred.
The highest number of overdose deaths occurred in the 19134 Zip Code with 193 deaths. Other Philadelphia zip codes with a high number of overdose fatalities in 2022 include 19140 (n=85), 19124 (n=74), 19139 (n=60),19133 (n=54), and 19132 (n=50).