In the past decade, our Center has explored the larger context for the opioid crisis. In 2018, we studied rising midlife mortality rates across multiple racial and ethnic groups. Our goal was to raise public awareness, in particular to present the evidence that the problem of increasing mortality rates is much larger than the opioid epidemic and affects more than one race.
In 2021, we began exploring economic cost savings as an additional motivator to improve all Virginians' opioid-related health outcomes. In other words, we wanted to know, “How can we afford not to improve our opioid response?”
We knew better outcomes would bring economic relief to everyone impacted – from people who use opioids to their loved ones, employers, schools, and other systems surrounding them. But we didn’t have a way of quantifying those benefits.
Until now.
With VDH’s partnership, we created a first-of-its kind detailed map, showing which communities have faced the greatest opioid-related economic losses and would benefit most from investment. Using data from VDH, the CDC, and other sources, with advanced software and a data model created by Altarum, we calculated potential savings on costs incurred in a single year.
At the CDC’s request, we presented our first set of economic data to the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy in 2022, using the most recent available data for our key inputs (from 2020). We have updated the data twice since then, with 2023 data for our current data release.