Ohio opioid overdose deaths at 10-year high start of pandemic

Ohio opioid overdose deaths surged during the second quarter of 2020, making it the deadliest three-month period since the opioid epidemic began, according to a new state study.

The death rate from opioid overdoses increased to 11.01 per 100,000 people during the second quarter of 2020. Previously, the highest rate was 10.87 overdoses per 100,000 reported in the first quarter of 2017, according to a study by a task force created by Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost.