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Health Officer Update: Opioid overdose trends & support

  • 4 hours ago
  • 2 min read


Dr. Herbie Duber is the health officer for Kitsap Public Health District. In addition to his work in public health, Dr. Duber serves as a professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Washington and is an attending physician at UW Medical Center and Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.


Hello and welcome to my March Health Officer Update.


This month, I want to talk about opioid trends and how organizations in Kitsap County are working to decrease opioid overdoses. 


Opioid trends


Since 2020, we have seen record highs of both fatal and non-fatal overdoses related to opioid drugs, including fentanyl, in our nation. But in 2023, the number of fatal overdoses (overdoses that resulted in death) started to drop. This is a very exciting finding, but at the same time we want to be cautious and make sure overdoses keep going down.


A graph showing a sharp increase in overdose deaths nationally starting in 2020-2023, then a steep decrease in 2024 deaths.
National drug overdose deaths

Even with the significant decrease in overdose deaths, our most recent numbers are still way higher than they were 10 years ago. Preliminary 2025 CDC data show that some states have reached pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels, which is very encouraging.


Overdoses in Washington state have not returned to pre-pandemic levels yet, and preliminary 2025 data suggest our downward curve could be flattening out.


2025 data aren’t available for Kitsap yet. 2024 data showed that our county largely followed the national trend of decreasing overdose deaths.  


A graph showing a sharp increase in overdose deaths Kitsap starting in 2020-2023, then a decrease in 2024 deaths.
Kitsap County drug overdose deaths

What we're doing to help


Although we’re seeing an encouraging decline in overdoses, we need to keep our foot on the gas pedal and expand interventions across all stages of care - from preventing opioid use to increasing access to treatment for substance use disorder.


There are many complex reasons that overdose deaths are declining. Just a few of the strategies that we believe are making a difference in Kitsap include:


  • Increased education for healthcare providers around appropriate prescribing of opioid drugs 

  • Expanded treatment options for opioid use disorder (one example is a telebuprenorphine hotline that just launched in our region)

  • Greater awareness and access around naloxone – a medication used to reverse opioid overdoses

  • Better coordination between first responders, healthcare and behavioral health organizations, public health, and other service providers


Many government agencies and organizations are working together locally to prevent overdoses and prevent misuse of opioid drugs. These efforts are strengthened by opioid abatement funds — money from state and federal settlements with drug companies — being distributed in Kitsap and throughout the nation. 


Some of the ways Kitsap Public Health District helps prevent overdoses are:



Connection is overdose prevention.

Support your community


You can help prevent overdoses and reduce stigma around substance use by sharing materials from our overdose prevention campaign and other local resources like:


Learn more and keep in touch


You can watch my full report to the Kitsap Public Health Board by clicking on the video below or on Vimeo. You can read past Health Officer Updates on our blog. 



Have a question or want to get in touch? Email pio@kitsappublichealth.org. 


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