By Jack Phillips
Contributing Writer
A new study has found that America’s seniors are also hard-hit by the ongoing fentanyl crisis.
A report issued by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, analyzing federal health data, found that over the past eight years, U.S. adults aged 65 and older have experienced a 9,000% increase in overdose deaths involving fentanyl mixed with stimulants such as methamphetamine and cocaine.
The researchers analyzed 404,964 death certificates that listed fentanyl as a cause of death between 1999 and 2023 obtained via a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention database. Most of the deaths, or 387,924, were attributed to younger adults in the 25-64 age bracket, but 17,040 adults aged 65 or older were also present in the database.
Between 2015 and 2023, fentanyl-related overdose deaths shot up from 264 in 2015 to 4,144 in 2023 among older adults, or a 1,470% increase. Younger adults also saw a significant spike in overdose deaths, going from 8,513 to 64,694 in that same time period.
The group found there appears to be “a growing number of fentanyl-stimulant related deaths, particularly among adults age 65 or older.” It said that 8.7% of deaths overall, or 23, were attributed to fentanyl and stimulants in 2015, but rose 9,000% to 49.9%, or 2,070, in 2023.
Younger adults, meanwhile, recorded in fentanyl-stimulant deaths increased by 2,115% in the same eight-year span, increasing from 1,812 in 2015 to 38,333 deaths in 2023, according to the researchers.
“A common misconception is that opioid overdoses primarily affect younger people,” Gab Pasia, a lead author of the study and a medical student at the University of Nevada, said in a statement. “Our analysis shows that older adults are also impacted by fentanyl-related deaths and that stimulant involvement has become much more common in this group. This suggests older adults are affected by the current fourth wave of the opioid crisis, following similar patterns seen in younger populations.”
The research comes as provisional data released by the CDC earlier this year show that overall overdose deaths dropped by nearly 27% between 2023 and 2024. An estimated 80,000 people died from overdoses last year, according to the provisional data, which is down from 110,000 in 2023.
The CDC noted at the time overdoses are still the leading cause of death for people 18-44 years old, which underscores “the need for ongoing efforts to maintain this progress.”
President Donald Trump in June signed a measure passed by Congress, called the HALT Fentanyl Act, which permanently designates fentanyl-related substances as Schedule I drugs under the Controlled Substances Act and gives law enforcement officials more authority in targeting drug traffickers. Possession of a Schedule I drug is considered a felony and can be prosecuted as drug smuggling.
The Trump administration also has declared stemming the flow of fentanyl precursors from China a priority in trade talks with Beijing, an effort that follows a spate of initiatives by the Biden administration to reduce the importation of such substances into the United States from China and other illegal supply chains.
Meanwhile, Trump has designated Mexican drug cartels and several gangs that smuggle these and other narcotics into the United States as foreign terrorist organizations. In September and October, the Pentagon and Trump confirmed several U.S. military strikes on boats that they said were smuggling drugs from Venezuela.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
