Michigan overdose death rate declines by 47 percent since 2021

Preliminary 2025 data projects decrease in overdose deaths for fourth year in a row 

LANSING, Mich. – The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) announces that Michigan’s overdose death rate has declined by 47% since 2021.  

Preliminary data for 2025 is projecting a lower rate of 16.4 deaths per 100,000 residents compared to a rate of 30.8 in 2021. This suggests overdose deaths have continued to decline for the fourth year in a row. In 2021, there were 3,096 overdose deaths compared to fewer than 1,800 deaths projected for 2025. 

“MDHHS remains committed to continuing programs and partnerships that help reduce overdose deaths, expand treatment options and support long-term recovery,” said Elizabeth Hertel, MDHHS director. “This decrease represents real progress and reflects the impact of sustained, data-driven investments of opioid settlement dollars across Michigan.” 

This progress reflects Michigan’s continued statewide strategy and efforts to address substance use disorder through the pillars of prevention, harm reduction, treatment and recovery services. 

In 2019, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer established the Michigan Opioids Task Force to create a coordinated approach to reduce overdose deaths. The state’s response focuses on those four main pillars ensuring programs are aligned toward one goal – saving lives.  

“Michigan’s progress did not happen by accident,” said Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, chief medical executive and chair of the Michigan Opioids Task Force. “It is the result of years of work to expand naloxone access, strengthen harm reduction services, improve real-time data, remove barriers to treatment and support people throughout recovery. These are not just statistics. These are parents, children, siblings, friends and neighbors who are alive today because life-saving tools and services were available when they were needed.” 

While the overall overdose death rate has declined significantly, MDHHS continues to focus on addressing persistent racial and geographic disparities in both overdose deaths and access to care. Urban counties and regions continue to experience disproportionately higher overdose rates than the rest of the state – 24% higher than the total state rate in 2024 – and Black overdose death rates are more than twice that of all other residents. The Michigan Opioids Task Force will continue to use data, community partnerships and targeted investments to better understand where disparities remain and strengthen services in communities most affected. 

“While this decline is encouraging, our work is not done,” said Hertel. “Substance use disorder continues to affect families and communities across Michigan. MDHHS will work with providers, local partners, community organizations and people with lived experience to build on this progress and ensure residents can access the services and support they need.” 

Harm reduction expansion has been a key component of Michigan’s overdose response. Since 2019, Michigan has expanded from five agencies offering harm reduction services to 115 community-based sites. The Naloxone Direct Portal was also launched in 2020 to provide free naloxone for community distribution. Since then, more than 1.8 million naloxone kits have been distributed statewide, with nearly 34,000 reported uses to reverse overdoses and help save lives. 

An MDHHS modeling study released in 2025 found that harm reduction programs have saved lives, reduced hospitalizations and emergency department visits and prevented hepatitis C cases in Michigan. Investments in these programs have primarily been supported through opioid settlement dollars.  

Improvements have also been made in data collection and response. Today, the state can identify changes to overdoses due to the drug supply more quickly, alert communities and coordinate public health responses. 

MDHHS and the Michigan Opioids Task Force have worked to expand access to treatment and recovery services by: 

• Removing prior authorization barriers for medications used to treat opioid use disorder. 

• Supporting telehealth options to improve access to care.  

• Expanding the Substance Use Disorder Health Home model, a service and payment model through Medicaid for providing coordinated care for SUD-related services.  

• Incentivizing more than 200 providers to expand access to substance use disorder care for more than 12,000 clients.  

• Expanding access to medications to treat opioid use disorder in 25 county jails.  

• Supporting service delivery expansion for 32 recovery community organizations.  

• Adding more than 250 recovery housing beds in the last two years.  

Prevention efforts continue to be a core part of the state’s response. MDHHS has supported prevention and family preservation services for more than 400 families involved in the child welfare system, with at least 95% of families remaining together. The department has also launched public awareness campaigns using research and polling to tailor messaging and measure effectiveness. 

Funding for substance use disorder services in Michigan is coordinated through several sources, including Medicaid, federal grants and opioid settlement funding. The state is slated to receive more than $1.8 billion from national opioid settlements by 2040, with half distributed to the State of Michigan Opioid Healing and Recovery Fund and the other half distributed directly to county, city and township governments 

Continued investment remains critical as Michigan monitors an increasingly complex and changing drug supply, including contamination involving fentanyl, xylazine and medetomidine, as well as renewed concerns about carfentanil. MDHHS is also working to address emerging substances sold in convenience stores, smoke shops and online, including products containing 7-hydroxymitragynine, commonly known as 7-OH, and nitrous oxide. These evolving risks underscore the need to sustain prevention, harm reduction, treatment, recovery and surveillance efforts that can quickly respond to emerging threats and help protect residents.  

For more information about substance use disorder resources and the state’s opioid settlement investments, visit Michigan.gov/opioids.  

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