CRIME

Coroner: Franklin County overdose deaths up nearly 75% over 2019

Bethany Bruner
The Columbus Dispatch
Dr. Anahi Ortiz, Franklin County coroner

The number of people who fatally overdosed in Franklin County during the first half of 2020 increased 75% from the year before, according to data from the Franklin County Coroner.

The preliminary data surrounding overdose deaths that occurred between Jan. 1 and June 30 was released Wednesday by Coroner Dr. Anahi Ortiz.

The data showed 437 people died after fatally overdosing on drugs, up 73.4% from the 252 deaths in the first six months of 2019. Most of the overdoses involved people ages 25 to 34.

Ortiz said fentanyl has accounted for 85.5% of all overdose deaths in 2020, up from 79% in the first half of 2019. The number of heroin-related deaths decreased from 5% in 2019 to 2.5% in the first six months of 2020.

The number of methamphetamine-related deaths more than doubled, from 25 in the first half of 2019 to 62 in 2020.

More than 52% of fatal overdoses involved people between the ages of 25 and 44. 

The areas of the city with the most overdoses included South Linden, West Side, Hilltop, South Side and the Southeast Side near Refugee Road.

bbruner@dispatch.com

@bethany_bruner