Chart assignment
Charts to read and discuss
Read each chart, then answer its questions. Every chart shows its source and date; open it for a table of the numbers and the data to download.
Chart 1 of 1 · Health
How many overdose deaths involve prescription opioids?
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6,852 overdose deaths in the US in the 12 months ending May 2026 involved natural and semi-synthetic opioids, the group that includes prescription painkillers such as oxycodone, hydrocodone and morphine, whether prescribed or not. The most in any 12 months was about 15,000, in the year ending July 2017. A death can involve more than one drug. The counts are provisional, and the latest months are slightly undercounted while investigations finish. CDC's provisional counts start with the 12 months ending January 2015.
Questions to discuss
- In one sentence of your own, what does this chart show?
- Find the biggest change or difference in the chart. What might explain it?
- Who collected these numbers, and how recent are they? What else would you want to know before drawing a conclusion?
Source: CDC National Center for Health Statistics, Provisional drug overdose death counts (Public domain (U.S. government work)) · Data as of May 31, 2026
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