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DRUG ABUSE WARNING NETWORK, 2008:
AREA PROFILES OF DRUG-RELATED MORTALITY



U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
Office of Applied Studies

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This report was prepared by the Office of Applied Studies (OAS), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), and by RTI International (a trade name of Research Triangle Institute, Research Triangle Park, NC). Work by RTI was performed under contract number 280-03-2602.

PUBLIC DOMAIN NOTICE

All material appearing in this report is in the public domain and may be reproduced or copied without permission from SAMHSA. Citation of the source is appreciated. However, this publication may not be reproduced or distributed for a fee without the specific, written authorization of the Office of Communications, SAMHSA, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

RECOMMENDED CITATION

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Office of Applied Studies. Drug Abuse Warning Network, 2008: Area Profiles of Drug-Related Mortality. Rockville, MD, 2010.

ELECTRONIC ACCESS AND COPIES OF PUBLICATION

This publication may be downloaded from http://DAWNinfo.samhsa.gov or from http://oas.samhsa.gov.
Or, please call SAMHSA's Health Information Network at:

1-877-SAMHSA-7 (1-877-726-4727)
(English and Español).

ORIGINATING OFFICE

Office of Applied Studies
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
1 Choke Cherry Road, Rockville, MD 20857

May 2010



CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

DAWN MORTALITY DATA
Drug-related deaths
Drugs
Deaths included in this publication
Standardized death rates

PARTICIPATION IN DAWN 2008

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

DESCRIPTION OF PROFILES
Full profiles
Limitations to data
Brief profiles for selected metropolitan areas
County profiles
State profiles

PROFILES

Alabama
Birmingham-Hoover, AL

Arizona
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ

Arkansas
Fort Smith, AR-OK

California
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA
San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA
Contra Costa County
San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, CA
San Francisco County

Colorado
Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, CO
Arapahoe County
Denver County

District of Columbia
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV
District of Columbia
Prince George's County

Florida
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL
Miami-Dade County
Palm Beach County

Georgia
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA
Fulton County

Illinois
Chicago-Naperville-Joliet, IL-IN-WI
Cook County
Lake County

Indiana
Indianapolis-Carmel, IN
Marion County

Kentucky
Louisville-Jefferson County, KY-IN

Louisiana
New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, LA
Jefferson Parish

Maine
Statewide
Augusta-Waterville, ME
Bangor, ME
Lewiston-Auburn, ME
Portland-South Portland-Biddeford, ME
Rockland, ME

Maryland
Statewide
Baltimore-Towson, MD
Anne Arundel County
Baltimore City
Baltimore County
Cambridge, MD
Cumberland, MD-WV
Easton, MD
Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV
Lexington Park, MD
Ocean Pines, MD
Salisbury, MD

Massachusetts
Statewide
Barnstable Town, MA
Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH
Essex County
Middlesex County
Norfolk County
Plymouth County
Suffolk County
Pittsfield, MA
Springfield, MA
Hampden County
Worcester, MA

Michigan
Detroit-Warren-Livonia, MI
Macomb County
Wayne County

Minnesota
Brainerd, MN
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI
Hennepin County
Ramsey County

Missouri
Kansas City, MO-KS
Jackson County
St. Louis, MO-IL
St. Louis City
St. Louis County

New Hampshire
Statewide
Berlin, NH-VT
Claremont, NH
Concord, NH
Keene, NH
Laconia, NH
Lebanon, NH-VT
Manchester-Nashua, NH

New Mexico
Statewide
Alamogordo, NM
Albuquerque, NM
Bernalillo County
Carlsbad-Artesia, NM
Clovis, NM
Deming, NM
Española, NM
Farmington, NM
Gallup, NM
Grants, NM
Hobbs, NM
Las Cruces, NM
Las Vegas, NM
Los Alamos, NM
Portales, NM
Roswell, NM
Ruidoso, NM
Santa Fe, NM
Silver City, NM
Taos, NM

New York
Buffalo-Niagara Falls, NY
Erie County
New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA
NY Suburban, NY
Suffolk County
NYC 5 Boroughs, NY
Bronx County
Kings County
New York County
Queens County
Richmond County
Newark-Edison, NJ-PA

North Dakota
Fargo, ND-MN
Grand Forks, ND-MN

Ohio
Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, OH

Oklahoma
Statewide
Ada, OK
Altus, OK
Ardmore, OK
Bartlesville, OK
Duncan, OK
Durant, OK
Elk City, OK
Enid, OK
Guymon, OK
Lawton, OK
McAlester, OK
Miami, OK
Muskogee, OK
Oklahoma City, OK
Oklahoma County
Ponca City, OK
Shawnee, OK
Stillwater, OK
Tahlequah, OK
Tulsa, OK
Tulsa County
Woodward, OK

Oregon
Statewide
Albany-Lebanon, OR
Astoria, OR
Bend, OR
Brookings, OR
Coos Bay, OR
Corvallis, OR
Eugene-Springfield, OR
Grants Pass, OR
Hood River, OR
Klamath Falls, OR
La Grande, OR
Medford, OR
Ontario, OR-ID
Pendleton-Hermiston, OR
Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA
Multnomah County
Prineville, OR
Roseburg, OR
Salem, OR
The Dalles, OR

Pennsylvania
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
Delaware County
Montgomery County
Philadelphia County

Rhode Island
Statewide
Providence-New Bedford-Fall River, RI-MA
Bristol County
Providence County

South Dakota
Sioux Falls, SD

Tennessee
Kingsport-Bristol-Bristol, TN-VA

Texas
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX

Utah
Statewide
Brigham City, UT
Cedar City, UT
Heber, UT
Logan, UT-ID
Ogden-Clearfield, UT
Price, UT
Provo-Orem, UT
Salt Lake City, UT
Salt Lake County
St. George, UT
Vernal, UT

Vermont
Statewide
Barre, VT
Bennington, VT
Burlington-South Burlington, VT
Rutland, VT

Virginia
Statewide
Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford, VA
Charlottesville, VA
Culpeper, VA
Danville, VA
Harrisonburg, VA
Lynchburg, VA
Martinsville, VA
Richmond, VA
Roanoke, VA
Staunton-Waynesboro, VA
Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC
Winchester, VA-WV

Washington
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA
King County
Pierce County
Snohomish County

West Virginia
Statewide
Beckley, WV
Bluefield, WV-VA
Charleston, WV
Kanawha County
Clarksburg, WV
Fairmont, WV
Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH
Morgantown, WV
Oak Hill, WV
Parkersburg-Marietta-Vienna, WV-OH
Point Pleasant, WV-OH
Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH
Wheeling, WV-OH

Wisconsin
Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI

List of Tables
Table 1. Participation of medical examiner/coroner jurisdictions in DAWN, 2008
Table 2. Rates of drug-related deaths and drug-related suicide deaths per 100,000 population, 2008
Table 3. Rates of drug-related deaths and percentage change, 2007 and 2008

List of Figures
Figure 1. Sample metropolitan area profile layout

List of Appendixes
Appendix A: Multum Licensing Agreement
Appendix B: Glossary of Terms
Appendix C: DAWN Mortality Data Collection



DAWN MORTALITY DATA

The Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) is a public health surveillance system that monitors drug-related deaths referred to medical examiners and coroners (ME/Cs). In 2008, there were 544 participating ME/Cs who identified and reported to DAWN on all deaths referred to their offices that met the DAWN criteria for being a drug-related death. These ME/Cs represent the larger metropolitan and micropolitan areas in 36 states and, collectively, cover one third of the nation's population. Findings in this publication reflect data on drug-related deaths that occurred during calendar year 2008 and were reported by participating ME/Cs to DAWN. In selected tables, data from reporting year 2007 are included for comparison. The Office of Applied Studies (OAS) of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is responsible for DAWN.

The mortality component of DAWN does not rely on a statistical sample of ME/Cs. Findings cannot be considered representative of ME/Cs that did not participate, and results cannot be extrapolated to the United States as a whole. DAWN mortality data for 2003 and later are not comparable to mortality data for any years prior to 2003 because of changes introduced in the 2003 reporting year.

Drug-related deaths

Since 2003, a DAWN case is any death reviewed by an ME/C that was related to recent drug use. Findings in this publication pertain to drug-related deaths and drug-related suicide deaths reported by participating death investigation jurisdictions as DAWN cases.1 The data items submitted on drug-related deaths are described in Appendix C.

DAWN cases are identified through a retrospective review of decedent case files in each participating death investigation jurisdiction. A DAWN case is any death that is determined by the ME/C as being related to drug use. The relationship between the death and the drug need not be causal; the drug need only be implicated in the death. The drug use may have been for legitimate, therapeutic purposes or for the purpose of drug abuse or misuse, but in either case, the drug use must have been recent.

These eligibility criteria for a DAWN case are intentionally broad and inclusive. Since death record documentation varies in clarity and comprehensiveness across jurisdictions, broad criteria reduce the potential for judgment calls that could cause data to vary systematically and unexpectedly across reporters and jurisdictions. Broad criteria also capture a diverse set of drug-related deaths that support a wide variety of analytical purposes and interests.

For decedents under the age of 21, DAWN cases include deaths where the only drug involved was alcohol. For those 21 or older, there must be at least one other drug involved besides alcohol for the death to be a DAWN case.

Drugs

Drugs that make a death eligible for DAWN include:

Deaths included in this publication

Findings in this publication focus on two major categories of drug-related deaths, based on the manner of death as determined by the ME/C.

  1. Drug-related deaths (other than drug-related suicide deaths) include the following:

    • Natural or accidental deaths with drug involvement. These two categories capture deaths involving medical use, nonmedical use, overuse, and misuse of prescription and over-the-counter medications and drug abuse.
    • Homicide by drug. This category was designed to capture malicious poisonings; that is, the decedent was administered a drug(s) by another person for a malicious purpose.
    • Deaths with drug involvement when manner of death denoted by the ME/C was "could not be determined" (CNBD). This manner of death is assigned by the ME/C when a definitive ruling of suicide, homicide, natural, or accidental death is not possible.
  2. Drug-related suicide deaths include suicide deaths with drug involvement. The determination of suicide is made by the ME/C. Because of the broad eligibility criteria for determining DAWN cases, drug-related suicide deaths include more than deaths due to overdoses. A reported drug may not be the cause of the suicide death even if only one drug was involved. Drug(s) must be a contributing factor, though.

Findings reported in this publication are based on concluded investigations that were submitted by June 2009 for deaths that occurred during 2008. Death investigations that were not concluded by the ME/C by the end of the data collection period are excluded.

Standardized death rates

Death rates (i.e., the number of deaths per 100,000 population) are reported to permit comparisons within or across areas or across demographic subgroups. This use of death rates, as opposed to counts, is important because two areas with similar numbers of drug-related deaths may have vastly different populations. Rates, which take population differences into account, standardized these comparisons.

There are limitations to be considered when comparing death rates. While differences in rates may signify differences in underlying drug-related mortality (or a lack of differences may suggest similarity), other factors may confound such comparisons. For example, State laws dictate which deaths are subject to ME/C review. These laws vary by State and, within each State, by time. Within ME/C offices, toxicology testing practices vary depending on local concerns, funding, and testing technology. Such factors will affect the number of deaths determined to be DAWN cases and the number of deaths attributed to particular drugs. Even though there is no sampling error in DAWN ME/C data, the possibility of nonsampling errors (i.e., errors in reporting, differences in testing protocols) limits the interpretation of the findings.

In some circumstances, large percentage change values can be misleading because a small increase in the number of deaths can result in a large percentage difference if the base is small. For example, in 2008, Klamath Falls, OR, experienced an 800 percent increase in drug-related deaths compared with 2007. There was one death in 2007, and there were nine deaths in 2008. To get a sense of the significance of a large percentage change, it is helpful to also consider the absolute numbers of deaths, the population, and rates per 100,000 population.

PARTICIPATION IN DAWN 2008

DAWN relies on the voluntary cooperation of ME/Cs in selected areas of the United States to provide standardized data on drug-related deaths. For 2008, there were 373 jurisdictions in 153 metropolitan areas and 447 jurisdictions in 12 States that submitted mortality data to DAWN.34

Table 1 provides information on the metropolitan areas and States that participated in 2008. It includes the following:

An awareness of the extent of DAWN's coverage within a given area is needed to interpret DAWN mortality data appropriately. ME/C participants in DAWN are not part of a scientific sample at either the metropolitan or the national level. Within a metropolitan area, findings based on participating jurisdictions are not representative of nonparticipating jurisdictions. Reports from only a portion of jurisdictions within a metropolitan area can be extrapolated neither to the metropolitan area as a whole nor to the nation as a whole.5

While the data do not support any representations at a national level, some generalizations can be made at a metropolitan level, even if some ME/Cs do not participate. For example, while only 1 (10%) of the 10 counties that make up the Houston metropolitan area participated in DAWN in 2008, that county is home to 70 percent of the area's total population. The important consideration is population coverage, not ME/C participation, per se.

Among the metropolitan areas listed in Table 1, population coverage exceeded 90 percent in 123 metropolitan areas, with 100 percent coverage in 118 of those areas. The remaining metropolitan areas had response rates that ranged from a low of 22 percent for Dallas-Fort Worth to 85 percent for St. Louis. Population coverage below 50 percent usually equates to the absence of large jurisdictions.

Table 1
Participation of medical examiner/coroner jurisdictions in DAWN, 2008
State Area* Total jurisdictions
(counties)
Participating jurisdictions
(counties)
Percent of jurisdictions in area that participated Population in participating jurisdictions Percent of area population covered by participating ME/Cs
* Names in italics are submetropolitan areas within the larger metropolitan statistical area.
NOTE: ME/Cs = medical examiners and coroners.
SOURCE: Office of Applied Studies, SAMHSA, Drug Abuse Warning Network, 2008 (08/2009 update).
Twelve States 447 447 100% 38,172,645 100%
One hundred fifty-three metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas 525 373 71% 111,888,133 76%
Four submetropolitan areas 26 13 50% 12,885,466 62%
Five hundred forty-four counties 544 544 100% 114,776,727 100%
Alabama Birmingham-Hoover, AL 7 1 14% 659,503 59%
Arizona Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 2 1 50% 3,954,598 92%
Arkansas Fort Smith, AR-OK 5 2 40% 90,836 31%
California Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA 2 1 50% 9,862,049 77%
California San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA 1 1 100% 3,001,072 100%
California San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA 5 4 80% 2,800,163 66%
California San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, CA 3 3 100% 1,770,460 100%
Colorado Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, CO 10 8 80% 2,492,565 99%
District of Columbia Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV 22 22 100% 5,358,130 100%
Florida Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL 3 2 67% 3,663,538 68%
Georgia Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA 28 7 25% 2,240,915 42%
Illinois Chicago-Naperville-Joliet, IL-IN-WI 14 9 64% 8,758,561 92%
Indiana Indianapolis-Carmel, IN 10 2 20% 1,019,538 59%
Kentucky Louisville-Jefferson County, KY-IN 13 1 8% 713,877 57%
Louisiana New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, LA 7 4 57% 555,998 49%
Maine Statewide 16 16 100% 1,316,456 100%
Maine Augusta-Waterville, ME 1 1 100% 120,959 100%
Maine Bangor, ME 1 1 100% 148,651 100%
Maine Lewiston-Auburn, ME 1 1 100% 106,877 100%
Maine Portland-South Portland-Biddeford, ME 3 3 100% 514,065 100%
Maine Rockland, ME 1 1 100% 40,686 100%
Maryland Statewide 24 24 100% 5,633,597 100%
Maryland Baltimore-Towson, MD 7 7 100% 2,667,117 100%
Maryland Cambridge, MD 1 1 100% 31,998 100%
Maryland Cumberland, MD-WV 2 2 100% 99,033 100%
Maryland Easton, MD 1 1 100% 36,215 100%
Maryland Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV 3 3 100% 263,753 100%
Maryland Lexington Park, MD 1 1 100% 101,578 100%
Maryland Ocean Pines, MD 1 1 100% 49,274 100%
Maryland Salisbury, MD 2 2 100% 120,165 100%
Massachusetts Statewide 14 14 100% 6,497,967 100%
Massachusetts Barnstable Town, MA 1 1 100% 221,049 100%
Massachusetts Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH 7 7 100% 4,522,858 100%
Massachusetts Pittsfield, MA 1 1 100% 129,395 100%
Massachusetts Springfield, MA 3 3 100% 687,558 100%
Massachusetts Worcester, MA 1 1 100% 783,806 100%
Michigan Detroit-Warren-Livonia, MI 6 4 67% 3,132,061 71%
Minnesota Brainerd, MN 2 1 50% 28,732 32%
Minnesota Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 13 9 69% 2,661,495 82%
Missouri Kansas City, MO-KS 15 4 27% 1,068,449 53%
Missouri St. Louis, MO-IL 16 9 56% 2,388,574 85%
New Hampshire Statewide 10 10 100% 1,315,809 100%
New Hampshire Berlin, NH-VT 2 2 100% 38,471 100%
New Hampshire Claremont, NH 1 1 100% 42,591 100%
New Hampshire Concord, NH 1 1 100% 148,161 100%
New Hampshire Keene, NH 1 1 100% 77,170 100%
New Hampshire Laconia, NH 1 1 100% 61,281 100%
New Hampshire Lebanon, NH-VT 3 3 100% 171,404 100%
New Hampshire Manchester-Nashua, NH 1 1 100% 402,042 100%
New Mexico Statewide 33 33 100% 1,984,356 100%
New Mexico Alamogordo, NM 1 1 100% 62,776 100%
New Mexico Albuquerque, NM 4 4 100% 845,913 100%
New Mexico Carlsbad-Artesia, NM 1 1 100% 51,360 100%
New Mexico Clovis, NM 1 1 100% 43,755 100%
New Mexico Deming, NM 1 1 100% 27,227 100%
New Mexico Española, NM 1 1 100% 40,692 100%
New Mexico Farmington, NM 1 1 100% 122,500 100%
New Mexico Gallup, NM 1 1 100% 70,724 100%
New Mexico Grants, NM 1 1 100% 27,285 100%
New Mexico Hobbs, NM 1 1 100% 59,155 100%
New Mexico Las Cruces, NM 1 1 100% 201,603 100%
New Mexico Las Vegas, NM 1 1 100% 28,558 100%
New Mexico Los Alamos, NM 1 1 100% 18,150 100%
New Mexico Portales, NM 1 1 100% 18,889 100%
New Mexico Roswell, NM 1 1 100% 63,060 100%
New Mexico Ruidoso, NM 1 1 100% 20,793 100%
New Mexico Santa Fe, NM 1 1 100% 143,937 100%
New Mexico Silver City, NM 1 1 100% 29,844 100%
New Mexico Taos, NM 1 1 100% 31,546 100%
New York Buffalo-Niagara Falls, NY 2 2 100% 1,124,309 100%
New York New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA 23 10 43% 11,115,006 58%
New York NY Suburban, NY 5 2 40% 1,611,468 38%
New York NYC 5 Boroughs, NY 5 5 100% 8,363,710 100%
New York Newark-Edison, NJ-PA 13 3 23% 1,139,828 18%
North Dakota Fargo, ND-MN 2 2 100% 195,685 100%
North Dakota Grand Forks, ND-MN 2 1 50% 30,694 32%
Ohio Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, OH 5 1 20% 1,283,925 61%
Oklahoma Statewide 77 77 100% 3,642,361 100%
Oklahoma Ada, OK 1 1 100% 36,999 100%
Oklahoma Altus, OK 1 1 100% 25,236 100%
Oklahoma Ardmore, OK 2 2 100% 57,134 100%
Oklahoma Bartlesville, OK 1 1 100% 50,452 100%
Oklahoma Duncan, OK 1 1 100% 43,498 100%
Oklahoma Durant, OK 1 1 100% 40,109 100%
Oklahoma Elk City, OK 1 1 100% 21,136 100%
Oklahoma Enid, OK 1 1 100% 58,167 100%
Oklahoma Guymon, OK 1 1 100% 20,283 100%
Oklahoma Lawton, OK 1 1 100% 111,772 100%
Oklahoma McAlester, OK 1 1 100% 45,115 100%
Oklahoma Miami, OK 1 1 100% 31,849 100%
Oklahoma Muskogee, OK 1 1 100% 71,278 100%
Oklahoma Oklahoma City, OK 7 7 100% 1,206,142 100%
Oklahoma Ponca City, OK 1 1 100% 45,632 100%
Oklahoma Shawnee, OK 1 1 100% 69,616 100%
Oklahoma Stillwater, OK 1 1 100% 78,280 100%
Oklahoma Tahlequah, OK 1 1 100% 45,733 100%
Oklahoma Tulsa, OK 7 7 100% 916,079 100%
Oklahoma Woodward, OK 1 1 100% 19,838 100%
Oregon Statewide 36 36 100% 3,790,060 100%
Oregon Albany-Lebanon, OR 1 1 100% 115,348 100%
Oregon Astoria, OR 1 1 100% 37,404 100%
Oregon Bend, OR 1 1 100% 158,456 100%
Oregon Brookings, OR 1 1 100% 21,523 100%
Oregon Coos Bay, OR 1 1 100% 63,453 100%
Oregon Corvallis, OR 1 1 100% 81,859 100%
Oregon Eugene-Springfield, OR 1 1 100% 346,560 100%
Oregon Grants Pass, OR 1 1 100% 81,618 100%
Oregon Hood River, OR 1 1 100% 21,536 100%
Oregon Klamath Falls, OR 1 1 100% 66,425 100%
Oregon La Grande, OR 1 1 100% 24,961 100%
Oregon Medford, OR 1 1 100% 201,138 100%
Oregon Ontario, OR-ID 2 1 50% 30,907 57%
Oregon Pendleton-Hermiston, OR 2 2 100% 84,666 100%
Oregon Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA 7 5 71% 1,771,935 80%
Oregon Prineville, OR 1 1 100% 23,023 100%
Oregon Roseburg, OR 1 1 100% 104,059 100%
Oregon Salem, OR 2 2 100% 391,680 100%
Oregon The Dalles, OR 1 1 100% 23,775 100%
Pennsylvania Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD 11 5 45% 3,500,631 60%
Rhode Island Statewide 5 5 100% 1,050,788 100%
Rhode Island Providence-New Bedford-Fall River, RI-MA 6 6 100% 1,596,611 100%
South Dakota Sioux Falls, SD 4 1 25% 179,180 77%
Tennessee Kingsport-Bristol-Bristol, TN-VA 5 3 60% 93,312 31%
Texas Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 12 2 17% 1,398,567 22%
Texas Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX 10 1 10% 3,984,349 70%
Utah Statewide 29 29 100% 2,736,424 100%
Utah Brigham City, UT 1 1 100% 49,015 100%
Utah Cedar City, UT 1 1 100% 44,540 100%
Utah Heber, UT 1 1 100% 21,066 100%
Utah Logan, UT-ID 2 1 50% 112,616 90%
Utah Ogden-Clearfield, UT 3 3 100% 531,488 100%
Utah Price, UT 1 1 100% 19,549 100%
Utah Provo-Orem, UT 2 2 100% 540,820 100%
Utah Salt Lake City, UT 3 3 100% 1,115,692 100%
Utah St. George, UT 1 1 100% 137,589 100%
Utah Vernal, UT 1 1 100% 29,885 100%
Vermont Statewide 14 14 100% 621,270 100%
Vermont Barre, VT 1 1 100% 58,829 100%
Vermont Bennington, VT 1 1 100% 36,382 100%
Vermont Burlington-South Burlington, VT 3 3 100% 208,460 100%
Vermont Rutland, VT 1 1 100% 63,331 100%
Virginia Statewide 134 134 100% 7,769,089 100%
Virginia Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford, VA 4 4 100% 158,328 100%
Virginia Charlottesville, VA 5 5 100% 194,391 100%
Virginia Culpeper, VA 1 1 100% 46,203 100%
Virginia Danville, VA 2 2 100% 105,783 100%
Virginia Harrisonburg, VA 2 2 100% 118,409 100%
Virginia Lynchburg, VA 6 6 100% 245,809 100%
Virginia Martinsville, VA 2 2 100% 69,859 100%
Virginia Richmond, VA 20 20 100% 1,225,626 100%
Virginia Roanoke, VA 6 6 100% 298,108 100%
Virginia Staunton-Waynesboro, VA 3 3 100% 117,170 100%
Virginia Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC 16 15 94% 1,634,109 99%
Virginia Winchester, VA-WV 3 3 100% 122,369 100%
Washington Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA 3 3 100% 3,344,813 100%
West Virginia Statewide 55 55 100% 1,814,468 100%
West Virginia Beckley, WV 1 1 100% 79,357 100%
West Virginia Bluefield, WV-VA 2 2 100% 105,287 100%
West Virginia Charleston, WV 5 5 100% 303,944 100%
West Virginia Clarksburg, WV 3 3 100% 92,212 100%
West Virginia Fairmont, WV 1 1 100% 56,496 100%
West Virginia Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH 5 2 40% 135,713 48%
West Virginia Morgantown, WV 2 2 100% 118,506 100%
West Virginia Oak Hill, WV 1 1 100% 46,341 100%
West Virginia Parkersburg-Marietta-Vienna, WV-OH 4 3 75% 99,111 62%
West Virginia Point Pleasant, WV-OH 2 1 50% 25,678 45%
West Virginia Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH 3 2 67% 53,528 44%
West Virginia Wheeling, WV-OH 3 2 67% 76,872 53%
Wisconsin Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI 4 1 25% 953,328 62%

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

Table 2 reports the rates of drug-related deaths and drug-related suicide deaths per 100,000 population for metropolitan areas and States that participated in DAWN in 2008. Table 3 compares the rates of drug-related deaths in 2008 with those found for 2007 and reports the percentage change. (Comparisons are not made for drug-related suicide deaths because of their small numbers.) Table 3 is limited to those areas where the same jurisdictions participated in 2007 as in 2008. Both tables include indicators of the population coverage in DAWN for 2008.

Table 2
Rates of drug-related deaths and drug-related suicide deaths per 100,000 population, 2008
State Area* Rate of drug-related deaths per 100,000 population Rate of drug-related suicide deaths per 100,000 population Population in participating jurisdictions Percent of area population covered by participating ME/Cs
* Names in italics are submetropolitan areas within the larger metropolitan statistical area.
Drug-related deaths exclude drug-related suicide deaths.
NOTE: ME/Cs = medical examiners and coroners.
SOURCE: Office of Applied Studies, SAMHSA, Drug Abuse Warning Network, 2008 (08/2009 update).
Alabama Birmingham-Hoover, AL 12.1 0.8 659,503 59%
Arizona Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 16.9 3.1 3,954,598 92%
Arkansas Fort Smith, AR-OK 16.5 2.2 90,836 31%
California Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA 9.4 1.5 9,862,049 77%
California San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA 12.7 2.8 3,001,072 100%
California San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA 12.8 2.4 2,800,163 66%
California Contra Costa County 9.4 2.2 1,029,703 100%
California San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, CA 14.8 2.5 1,770,460 100%
California San Francisco County 22.4 2.6 808,976 100%
Colorado Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, CO 14.8 2.9 2,492,565 99%
Colorado Arapahoe County 13.7 2.9 554,282 100%
Colorado Denver County 30.1 4.2 598,707 100%
District of Columbia Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV 7.7 1.6 5,358,130 100%
District of Columbia District of Columbia 29.2 3.5 591,833 100%
District of Columbia Prince George's County 7.3 0.4 820,852 100%
Florida Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL 10.0 1.9 3,663,538 68%
Florida Miami-Dade County 9.1 1.6 2,398,245 100%
Florida Palm Beach County 11.6 2.4 1,265,293 100%
Georgia Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA 9.1 1.7 2,240,915 42%
Georgia Fulton County 12.0 1.8 1,014,932 100%
Illinois Chicago-Naperville-Joliet, IL-IN-WI 9.7 0.9 8,758,561 92%
Illinois Cook County 10.7 0.7 5,294,664 100%
Illinois Lake County 11.2 1.1 712,453 100%
Indiana Indianapolis-Carmel, IN 16.4 1.7 1,019,538 59%
Indiana Marion County 16.8 1.9 880,380 100%
Kentucky Louisville-Jefferson County, KY-IN 14.0 2.8 713,877 57%
Louisiana New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, LA 19.4 1.6 555,998 49%
Louisiana Jefferson Parish 20.6 1.4 436,181 100%
Maine Statewide 11.4 2.1 1,316,456 100%
Maine Augusta-Waterville, ME 7.4 2.5 120,959 100%
Maine Bangor, ME 14.8 2.0 148,651 100%
Maine Lewiston-Auburn, ME 15.0 1.9 106,877 100%
Maine Portland-South Portland-Biddeford, ME 13.8 2.5 514,065 100%
Maine Rockland, ME 12.3 4.9 40,686 100%
Maryland Statewide 11.6 1.0 5,633,597 100%
Maryland Baltimore-Towson, MD 15.6 1.0 2,667,117 100%
Maryland Anne Arundel County 12.3 1.0 512,790 100%
Maryland Baltimore City 30.0 0.8 636,919 100%
Maryland Baltimore County 11.8 1.5 785,618 100%
Maryland Cambridge, MD 12.5 0.0 31,998 100%
Maryland Cumberland, MD-WV 15.1 2.0 99,033 100%
Maryland Easton, MD 22.1 5.5 36,215 100%
Maryland Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV 18.2 1.1 263,753 100%
Maryland Lexington Park, MD 12.8 0.0 101,578 100%
Maryland Ocean Pines, MD 20.3 2.0 49,274 100%
Maryland Salisbury, MD 12.5 2.5 120,165 100%
Massachusetts Statewide 14.1 1.5 6,497,967 100%
Massachusetts Barnstable Town, MA 13.6 1.8 221,049 100%
Massachusetts Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH 12.9 1.7 4,522,858 100%
Massachusetts Essex County 12.5 2.3 736,457 100%
Massachusetts Middlesex County 10.8 1.5 1,482,478 100%
Massachusetts Norfolk County 11.7 0.9 659,909 100%
Massachusetts Plymouth County 13.6 1.6 492,066 100%
Massachusetts Suffolk County 20.9 1.8 732,684 100%
Massachusetts Pittsfield, MA 10.0 3.1 129,395 100%
Massachusetts Springfield, MA 14.8 0.9 687,558 100%
Massachusetts Hampden County 17.8 0.9 460,840 100%
Massachusetts Worcester, MA 14.4 1.8 783,806 100%
Michigan Detroit-Warren-Livonia, MI 19.6 1.5 3,132,061 71%
Michigan Macomb County 17.6 2.3 830,663 100%
Michigan Wayne County 21.8 1.0 1,949,929 100%
Minnesota Brainerd, MN 17.4 0.0 28,732 32%
Minnesota Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 8.2 1.7 2,661,495 82%
Minnesota Hennepin County 8.6 1.2 1,140,988 100%
Minnesota Ramsey County 13.4 3.4 501,428 100%
Missouri Kansas City, MO-KS 12.4 2.4 1,068,449 53%
Missouri Jackson County 13.3 2.8 668,417 100%
Missouri St. Louis, MO-IL 12.1 1.6 2,388,574 85%
Missouri St. Louis City 21.7 2.3 354,361 100%
Missouri St. Louis County 10.9 1.9 991,830 100%
New Hampshire Statewide 9.3 2.0 1,315,809 100%
New Hampshire Berlin, NH-VT 13.0 0.0 38,471 100%
New Hampshire Claremont, NH 9.4 2.3 42,591 100%
New Hampshire Concord, NH 10.1 1.3 148,161 100%
New Hampshire Keene, NH 2.6 0.0 77,170 100%
New Hampshire Laconia, NH 13.1 1.6 61,281 100%
New Hampshire Lebanon, NH-VT 14.0 3.5 171,404 100%
New Hampshire Manchester-Nashua, NH 9.9 2.2 402,042 100%
New Mexico Statewide 22.0 4.0 1,984,356 100%
New Mexico Alamogordo, NM 12.7 8.0 62,776 100%
New Mexico Albuquerque, NM 27.1 4.4 845,913 100%
New Mexico Bernalillo County 31.6 4.9 635,139 100%
New Mexico Carlsbad-Artesia, NM 25.3 0.0 51,360 100%
New Mexico Clovis, NM 11.4 0.0 43,755 100%
New Mexico Deming, NM 0.0 3.7 27,227 100%
New Mexico Española, NM 61.4 2.5 40,692 100%
New Mexico Farmington, NM 11.4 2.4 122,500 100%
New Mexico Gallup, NM 14.1 2.8 70,724 100%
New Mexico Grants, NM 18.3 0.0 27,285 100%
New Mexico Hobbs, NM 23.7 0.0 59,155 100%
New Mexico Las Cruces, NM 13.4 3.0 201,603 100%
New Mexico Las Vegas, NM 35.0 0.0 28,558 100%
New Mexico Los Alamos, NM 11.0 5.5 18,150 100%
New Mexico Portales, NM 0.0 5.3 18,889 100%
New Mexico Roswell, NM 17.4 1.6 63,060 100%
New Mexico Ruidoso, NM 4.8 4.8 20,793 100%
New Mexico Santa Fe, NM 18.8 8.3 143,937 100%
New Mexico Silver City, NM 30.2 16.8 29,844 100%
New Mexico Taos, NM 28.5 3.2 31,546 100%
New York Buffalo-Niagara Falls, NY 10.1 1.2 1,124,309 100%
New York Erie County 9.9 1.0 909,845 100%
New York New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA 10.0 1.1 11,115,006 58%
New York NY Suburban, NY 12.5 1.8 1,611,468 38%
New York Suffolk County 12.4 1.8 1,512,224 100%
New York NYC 5 Boroughs, NY 9.7 0.8 8,363,710 100%
New York Bronx County 13.6 0.5 1,391,903 100%
New York Kings County 9.1 0.6 2,556,598 100%
New York New York County 9.4 1.7 1,634,795 100%
New York Queens County 7.5 0.8 2,293,007 100%
New York Richmond County 13.3 0.4 487,407 100%
New York Newark-Edison, NJ-PA 9.1 1.8 1,139,828 18%
North Dakota Fargo, ND-MN 3.6 0.5 195,685 100%
North Dakota Grand Forks, ND-MN 9.8 0.0 30,694 32%
Ohio Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, OH 17.5 1.9 1,283,925 61%
Oklahoma Statewide 16.0 2.1 3,642,361 100%
Oklahoma Ada, OK 13.5 2.7 36,999 100%
Oklahoma Altus, OK 0.0 4.0 25,236 100%
Oklahoma Ardmore, OK 17.5 0.0 57,134 100%
Oklahoma Bartlesville, OK 9.9 4.0 50,452 100%
Oklahoma Duncan, OK 18.4 0.0 43,498 100%
Oklahoma Durant, OK 24.9 5.0 40,109 100%
Oklahoma Elk City, OK 23.7 4.7 21,136 100%
Oklahoma Enid, OK 13.8 5.2 58,167 100%
Oklahoma Guymon, OK 14.8 0.0 20,283 100%
Oklahoma Lawton, OK 10.7 1.8 111,772 100%
Oklahoma McAlester, OK 11.1 6.6 45,115 100%
Oklahoma Miami, OK 15.7 3.1 31,849 100%
Oklahoma Muskogee, OK 33.7 2.8 71,278 100%
Oklahoma Oklahoma City, OK 14.1 1.8 1,206,142 100%
Oklahoma Oklahoma County 15.3 2.7 706,617 100%
Oklahoma Ponca City, OK 11.0 2.2 45,632 100%
Oklahoma Shawnee, OK 23.0 1.4 69,616 100%
Oklahoma Stillwater, OK 7.7 1.3 78,280 100%
Oklahoma Tahlequah, OK 37.2 2.2 45,733 100%
Oklahoma Tulsa, OK 19.4 1.9 916,079 100%
Oklahoma Tulsa County 20.1 2.0 591,982 100%
Oklahoma Woodward, OK 15.1 0.0 19,838 100%
Oregon Statewide 12.2 2.9 3,790,060 100%
Oregon Albany-Lebanon, OR 5.2 0.0 115,348 100%
Oregon Astoria, OR 10.7 5.3 37,404 100%
Oregon Bend, OR 13.9 4.4 158,456 100%
Oregon Brookings, OR 4.6 0.0 21,523 100%
Oregon Coos Bay, OR 3.2 1.6 63,453 100%
Oregon Corvallis, OR 3.7 1.2 81,859 100%
Oregon Eugene-Springfield, OR 14.4 4.3 346,560 100%
Oregon Grants Pass, OR 4.9 0.0 81,618 100%
Oregon Hood River, OR 13.9 0.0 21,536 100%
Oregon Klamath Falls, OR 13.5 3.0 66,425 100%
Oregon La Grande, OR 0.0 4.0 24,961 100%
Oregon Medford, OR 15.4 6.0 201,138 100%
Oregon Ontario, OR-ID 9.7 0.0 30,907 57%
Oregon Pendleton-Hermiston, OR 8.3 5.9 84,666 100%
Oregon Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA 13.7 3.3 1,771,935 80%
Oregon Multnomah County 25.2 4.5 714,567 100%
Oregon Prineville, OR 8.7 0.0 23,023 100%
Oregon Roseburg, OR 6.7 0.0 104,059 100%
Oregon Salem, OR 10.5 0.8 391,680 100%
Oregon The Dalles, OR 21.0 0.0 23,775 100%
Pennsylvania Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD 19.7 1.3 3,500,631 60%
Pennsylvania Delaware County 19.3 2.3 553,619 100%
Pennsylvania Montgomery County 9.8 1.4 778,048 100%
Pennsylvania Philadelphia County 30.5 1.0 1,447,395 100%
Rhode Island Statewide 18.4 3.2 1,050,788 100%
Rhode Island Providence-New Bedford-Fall River, RI-MA 18.7 2.5 1,596,611 100%
Rhode Island Bristol County 19.4 1.1 545,823 100%
Rhode Island Providence County 20.1 3.7 626,150 100%
South Dakota Sioux Falls, SD 0.6 2.2 179,180 77%
Tennessee Kingsport-Bristol-Bristol, TN-VA 12.9 2.1 93,312 31%
Texas Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 5.8 1.7 1,398,567 22%
Texas Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX 11.3 1.9 3,984,349 70%
Utah Statewide 15.1 2.2 2,736,424 100%
Utah Brigham City, UT 12.2 0.0 49,015 100%
Utah Cedar City, UT 13.5 0.0 44,540 100%
Utah Heber, UT 9.5 0.0 21,066 100%
Utah Logan, UT-ID 7.1 0.9 112,616 90%
Utah Ogden-Clearfield, UT 17.9 2.6 531,488 100%
Utah Price, UT 5.1 5.1 19,549 100%
Utah Provo-Orem, UT 10.9 0.7 540,820 100%
Utah Salt Lake City, UT 17.6 3.1 1,115,692 100%
Utah Salt Lake County 17.8 3.2 1,022,651 100%
Utah St. George, UT 12.4 0.7 137,589 100%
Utah Vernal, UT 3.3 0.0 29,885 100%
Vermont Statewide 11.6 1.9 621,270 100%
Vermont Barre, VT 10.2 1.7 58,829 100%
Vermont Bennington, VT 11.0 0.0 36,382 100%
Vermont Burlington-South Burlington, VT 10.6 1.9 208,460 100%
Vermont Rutland, VT 11.1 1.6 63,331 100%
Virginia Statewide 7.0 1.6 7,769,089 100%
Virginia Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford, VA 17.7 0.0 158,328 100%
Virginia Charlottesville, VA 3.6 1.5 194,391 100%
Virginia Culpeper, VA 13.0 2.2 46,203 100%
Virginia Danville, VA 10.4 0.0 105,783 100%
Virginia Harrisonburg, VA 2.5 2.5 118,409 100%
Virginia Lynchburg, VA 4.1 0.8 245,809 100%
Virginia Martinsville, VA 27.2 4.3 69,859 100%
Virginia Richmond, VA 7.8 1.1 1,225,626 100%
Virginia Roanoke, VA 12.4 3.0 298,108 100%
Virginia Staunton-Waynesboro, VA 13.7 2.6 117,170 100%
Virginia Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC 6.2 1.1 1,634,109 99%
Virginia Winchester, VA-WV 11.4 4.1 122,369 100%
Washington Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA 17.0 2.1 3,344,813 100%
Washington King County 16.3 2.0 1,875,519 100%
Washington Pierce County 19.1 2.9 785,639 100%
Washington Snohomish County 16.7 1.5 683,655 100%
West Virginia Statewide 25.5 2.1 1,814,468 100%
West Virginia Beckley, WV 25.2 3.8 79,357 100%
West Virginia Bluefield, WV-VA 37.0 0.9 105,287 100%
West Virginia Charleston, WV 30.3 2.0 303,944 100%
West Virginia Kanawha County 33.5 2.1 191,018 100%
West Virginia Clarksburg, WV 18.4 4.3 92,212 100%
West Virginia Fairmont, WV 14.2 5.3 56,496 100%
West Virginia Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH 31.7 1.5 135,713 48%
West Virginia Morgantown, WV 17.7 0.8 118,506 100%
West Virginia Oak Hill, WV 23.7 2.2 46,341 100%
West Virginia Parkersburg-Marietta-Vienna, WV-OH 13.1 4.0 99,111 62%
West Virginia Point Pleasant, WV-OH 23.4 0.0 25,678 45%
West Virginia Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH 24.3 0.0 53,528 44%
West Virginia Wheeling, WV-OH 14.3 1.3 76,872 53%
Wisconsin Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI 18.9 1.0 953,328 62%
Table 3
Rates of drug-related deaths and percentage change, 2007 and 2008
State Area* Rate of drug-related deaths per 100,000 population, 2007 Rate of drug-related deaths per 100,000 population, 2008 Percent change in rate, 2007 to 2008 Population in participating jurisdictions, 2008 Percent of area population covered by participating ME/Cs, 2008
* Names in italics are submetropolitan areas within the larger metropolitan statistical area.
Drug-related deaths exclude drug-related suicide deaths.
NOTE: ME/Cs = medical examiners and coroners. NC = no rate calculated because different jurisdictions participated in 2007 and 2008. NP = no percent change calculated, as there were no deaths in one or both years.
SOURCE: Office of Applied Studies, SAMHSA, Drug Abuse Warning Network, 2008 (08/2009 update).
Alabama Birmingham-Hoover, AL 17.5 12.1 -30.5 659,503 59%
Arizona Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 17.3 16.9 -2.0 3,954,598 92%
Arkansas Fort Smith, AR-OK 15.5 16.5 6.7 90,836 31%
California Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA 10.0 9.4 -6.3 9,862,049 77%
California San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA 12.0 12.7 5.9 3,001,072 100%
California San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA 13.9 12.8 -7.5 2,800,163 66%
California Contra Costa County 8.1 9.4 16.6 1,029,703 100%
California San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, CA 17.2 14.8 -14.1 1,770,460 100%
California San Francisco County 28.8 22.4 -22.3 808,976 100%
Colorado Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, CO NC NC NC 2,492,565 99%
Colorado Arapahoe County 15.6 13.7 -12.4 554,282 100%
Colorado Denver County 29.7 30.1 1.3 598,707 100%
District of Columbia Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV NC NC NC 5,358,130 100%
District of Columbia District of Columbia 36.4 29.2 -19.7 591,833 100%
District of Columbia Prince George's County 7.3 7.3 0.5 820,852 100%
Florida Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL NC NC NC 3,663,538 68%
Florida Miami-Dade County NC NC NC 2,398,245 100%
Florida Palm Beach County NC NC NC 1,265,293 100%
Georgia Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA 8.2 9.1 10.7 2,240,915 42%
Georgia Fulton County 10.3 12.0 17.0 1,014,932 100%
Illinois Chicago-Naperville-Joliet, IL-IN-WI 9.2 9.7 6.0 8,758,561 92%
Illinois Cook County 10.3 10.7 4.0 5,294,664 100%
Illinois Lake County 10.8 11.2 4.4 712,453 100%
Indiana Indianapolis-Carmel, IN 12.0 16.4 37.0 1,019,538 59%
Indiana Marion County 12.0 16.8 40.3 880,380 100%
Kentucky Louisville-Jefferson County, KY-IN NC NC NC 713,877 57%
Louisiana New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, LA 25.3 19.4 -23.2 555,998 49%
Louisiana Jefferson Parish 27.3 20.6 -24.3 436,181 100%
Maine Statewide 10.0 11.4 13.5 1,316,456 100%
Maine Augusta-Waterville, ME 12.4 7.4 -40.1 120,959 100%
Maine Bangor, ME 9.4 14.8 57.0 148,651 100%
Maine Lewiston-Auburn, ME 8.4 15.0 77.5 106,877 100%
Maine Portland-South Portland-Biddeford, ME 10.7 13.8 28.7 514,065 100%
Maine Rockland, ME 14.7 12.3 -16.6 40,686 100%
Maryland Statewide 14.6 11.6 -20.7 5,633,597 100%
Maryland Baltimore-Towson, MD 20.9 15.6 -25.5 2,667,117 100%
Maryland Anne Arundel County 12.3 12.3 -0.4 512,790 100%
Maryland Baltimore City 49.7 30.0 -39.6 636,919 100%
Maryland Baltimore County 13.7 11.8 -13.9 785,618 100%
Maryland Cambridge, MD 15.7 12.5 -20.4 31,998 100%
Maryland Cumberland, MD-WV NC NC NC 99,033 100%
Maryland Easton, MD 22.1 22.1 -0.2 36,215 100%
Maryland Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV NC NC NC 263,753 100%
Maryland Lexington Park, MD 5.0 12.8 156.6 101,578 100%
Maryland Ocean Pines, MD 22.3 20.3 -9.1 49,274 100%
Maryland Salisbury, MD 12.6 12.5 -0.7 120,165 100%
Massachusetts Statewide 15.8 14.1 -10.7 6,497,967 100%
Massachusetts Barnstable Town, MA 18.5 13.6 -26.5 221,049 100%
Massachusetts Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH 15.5 12.9 -16.8 4,522,858 100%
Massachusetts Essex County 19.2 12.5 -35.1 736,457 100%
Massachusetts Middlesex County 12.0 10.8 -9.9 1,482,478 100%
Massachusetts Norfolk County 11.1 11.7 4.8 659,909 100%
Massachusetts Plymouth County 13.7 13.6 -0.5 492,066 100%
Massachusetts Suffolk County 26.3 20.9 -20.5 732,684 100%
Massachusetts Pittsfield, MA 9.2 10.0 8.9 129,395 100%
Massachusetts Springfield, MA 16.9 14.8 -12.1 687,558 100%
Massachusetts Hampden County 20.0 17.8 -10.9 460,840 100%
Massachusetts Worcester, MA 13.0 14.4 10.5 783,806 100%
Michigan Detroit-Warren-Livonia, MI NC NC NC 3,132,061 71%
Michigan Macomb County 15.7 17.6 12.1 830,663 100%
Michigan Wayne County 21.1 21.8 3.3 1,949,929 100%
Minnesota Brainerd, MN NC NC NC 28,732 32%
Minnesota Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 7.1 8.2 15.5 2,661,495 82%
Minnesota Hennepin County 8.6 8.6 0.2 1,140,988 100%
Minnesota Ramsey County 11.2 13.4 19.0 501,428 100%
Missouri Kansas City, MO-KS 10.6 12.4 16.8 1,068,449 53%
Missouri Jackson County 10.8 13.3 23.2 668,417 100%
Missouri St. Louis, MO-IL 11.1 12.1 9.0 2,388,574 85%
Missouri St. Louis City 24.7 21.7 -12.2 354,361 100%
Missouri St. Louis County 10.2 10.9 7.1 991,830 100%
New Hampshire Statewide 12.6 9.3 -26.1 1,315,809 100%
New Hampshire Berlin, NH-VT 20.6 13.0 -36.9 38,471 100%
New Hampshire Claremont, NH 4.7 9.4 99.9 42,591 100%
New Hampshire Concord, NH 16.2 10.1 -37.5 148,161 100%
New Hampshire Keene, NH 7.8 2.6 -66.6 77,170 100%
New Hampshire Laconia, NH 22.9 13.1 -43.1 61,281 100%
New Hampshire Lebanon, NH-VT 12.9 14.0 8.9 171,404 100%
New Hampshire Manchester-Nashua, NH 10.0 9.9 -0.2 402,042 100%
New Mexico Statewide 21.1 22.0 4.5 1,984,356 100%
New Mexico Alamogordo, NM 11.2 12.7 14.3 62,776 100%
New Mexico Albuquerque, NM 25.8 27.1 4.9 845,913 100%
New Mexico Bernalillo County 29.9 31.6 5.7 635,139 100%
New Mexico Carlsbad-Artesia, NM 17.7 25.3 43.3 51,360 100%
New Mexico Clovis, NM 15.6 11.4 -26.5 43,755 100%
New Mexico Deming, NM 11.2 0.0 NP 27,227 100%
New Mexico Española, NM 61.4 61.4 0.0 40,692 100%
New Mexico Farmington, NM 15.5 11.4 -26.5 122,500 100%
New Mexico Gallup, NM 10.0 14.1 41.4 70,724 100%
New Mexico Grants, NM 11.0 18.3 66.3 27,285 100%
New Mexico Hobbs, NM 20.7 23.7 14.4 59,155 100%
New Mexico Las Cruces, NM 12.6 13.4 6.1 201,603 100%
New Mexico Las Vegas, NM 27.9 35.0 25.3 28,558 100%
New Mexico Los Alamos, NM 10.8 11.0 1.9 18,150 100%
New Mexico Portales, NM 20.9 0.0 NP 18,889 100%
New Mexico Roswell, NM 11.2 17.4 55.6 63,060 100%
New Mexico Ruidoso, NM 29.0 4.8 -83.4 20,793 100%
New Mexico Santa Fe, NM 19.7 18.8 -4.6 143,937 100%
New Mexico Silver City, NM 16.8 30.2 79.1 29,844 100%
New Mexico Taos, NM 34.9 28.5 -18.3 31,546 100%
New York Buffalo-Niagara Falls, NY 7.8 10.1 28.7 1,124,309 100%
New York Erie County 7.7 9.9 28.9 909,845 100%
New York New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA NC NC NC 11,115,006 58%
New York NY Suburban, NY NC NC NC 1,611,468 38%
New York Suffolk County 12.1 12.4 2.7 1,512,224 100%
New York NYC 5 Boroughs, NY 8.8 9.7 10.5 8,363,710 100%
New York Bronx County 13.8 13.6 -1.5 1,391,903 100%
New York Kings County 7.7 9.1 18.2 2,556,598 100%
New York New York County 9.8 9.4 -4.3 1,634,795 100%
New York Queens County 6.1 7.5 21.3 2,293,007 100%
New York Richmond County 8.9 13.3 49.8 487,407 100%
New York Newark-Edison, NJ-PA 8.1 9.1 12.7 1,139,828 18%
North Dakota Fargo, ND-MN 8.3 3.6 -57.1 195,685 100%
North Dakota Grand Forks, ND-MN NC NC NC 30,694 32%
Ohio Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, OH 15.3 17.5 14.6 1,283,925 61%
Oklahoma Statewide 15.0 16.0 6.4 3,642,361 100%
Oklahoma Ada, OK 16.4 13.5 -17.8 36,999 100%
Oklahoma Altus, OK 11.7 0.0 NP 25,236 100%
Oklahoma Ardmore, OK 14.1 17.5 23.8 57,134 100%
Oklahoma Bartlesville, OK 6.0 9.9 64.4 50,452 100%
Oklahoma Duncan, OK 16.2 18.4 13.6 43,498 100%
Oklahoma Durant, OK 22.9 24.9 8.9 40,109 100%
Oklahoma Elk City, OK 28.9 23.7 -18.0 21,136 100%
Oklahoma Enid, OK 3.5 13.8 295.4 58,167 100%
Oklahoma Guymon, OK 10.1 14.8 47.1 20,283 100%
Oklahoma Lawton, OK 8.8 10.7 22.3 111,772 100%
Oklahoma McAlester, OK 17.9 11.1 -38.2 45,115 100%
Oklahoma Miami, OK 6.2 15.7 153.7 31,849 100%
Oklahoma Muskogee, OK 16.9 33.7 99.3 71,278 100%
Oklahoma Oklahoma City, OK 15.2 14.1 -7.4 1,206,142 100%
Oklahoma Oklahoma County 20.3 15.3 -24.8 706,617 100%
Oklahoma Ponca City, OK 6.6 11.0 67.0 45,632 100%
Oklahoma Shawnee, OK 13.0 23.0 76.8 69,616 100%
Oklahoma Stillwater, OK 6.4 7.7 19.1 78,280 100%
Oklahoma Tahlequah, OK 24.4 37.2 52.4 45,733 100%
Oklahoma Tulsa, OK 20.8 19.4 -6.5 916,079 100%
Oklahoma Tulsa County 24.3 20.1 -17.3 591,982 100%
Oklahoma Woodward, OK 0.0 15.1 NP 19,838 100%
Oregon Statewide 10.1 12.2 20.7 3,790,060 100%
Oregon Albany-Lebanon, OR 7.1 5.2 -26.5 115,348 100%
Oregon Astoria, OR 16.1 10.7 -33.5 37,404 100%
Oregon Bend, OR 9.1 13.9 52.5 158,456 100%
Oregon Brookings, OR 13.8 4.6 -66.3 21,523 100%
Oregon Coos Bay, OR 15.8 3.2 -80.0 63,453 100%
Oregon Corvallis, OR 1.2 3.7 197.4 81,859 100%
Oregon Eugene-Springfield, OR 9.6 14.4 49.9 346,560 100%
Oregon Grants Pass, OR 7.4 4.9 -33.9 81,618 100%
Oregon Hood River, OR 0.0 13.9 NP 21,536 100%
Oregon Klamath Falls, OR 1.5 13.5 799.8 66,425 100%
Oregon La Grande, OR 4.0 0.0 NP 24,961 100%
Oregon Medford, OR 12.1 15.4 27.8 201,138 100%
Oregon Ontario, OR-ID 3.2 9.7 201.0 30,907 57%
Oregon Pendleton-Hermiston, OR 3.6 8.3 132.5 84,666 100%
Oregon Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA 11.6 13.7 17.6 1,771,935 80%
Oregon Multnomah County 23.0 25.2 9.4 714,567 100%
Oregon Prineville, OR 0.0 8.7 NP 23,023 100%
Oregon Roseburg, OR 14.4 6.7 -53.4 104,059 100%
Oregon Salem, OR 9.1 10.5 15.2 391,680 100%
Oregon The Dalles, OR 0.0 21.0 NP 23,775 100%
Pennsylvania Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD 18.8 19.7 4.7 3,500,631 60%
Pennsylvania Delaware County 14.8 19.3 30.4 553,619 100%
Pennsylvania Montgomery County 9.0 9.8 8.2 778,048 100%
Pennsylvania Philadelphia County 28.8 30.5 6.1 1,447,395 100%
Rhode Island Statewide NC NC NC 1,050,788 100%
Rhode Island Providence-New Bedford-Fall River, RI-MA NC NC NC 1,596,611 100%
Rhode Island Bristol County 17.6 19.4 10.3 545,823 100%
Rhode Island Providence County NC NC NC 626,150 100%
South Dakota Sioux Falls, SD 1.1 0.6 -51.1 179,180 77%
Tennessee Kingsport-Bristol-Bristol, TN-VA 8.6 12.9 49.5 93,312 31%
Texas Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 6.0 5.8 -3.9 1,398,567 22%
Texas Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX 14.7 11.3 -23.1 3,984,349 70%
Utah Statewide 17.4 15.1 -13.4 2,736,424 100%
Utah Brigham City, UT 18.8 12.2 -35.0 49,015 100%
Utah Cedar City, UT 18.4 13.5 -26.8 44,540 100%
Utah Heber, UT 24.5 9.5 -61.2 21,066 100%
Utah Logan, UT-ID 9.2 7.1 -22.6 112,616 90%
Utah Ogden-Clearfield, UT 15.8 17.9 12.8 531,488 100%
Utah Price, UT 25.5 5.1 -79.9 19,549 100%
Utah Provo-Orem, UT 15.7 10.9 -30.4 540,820 100%
Utah Salt Lake City, UT 20.3 17.6 -13.3 1,115,692 100%
Utah Salt Lake County 20.6 17.8 -13.6 1,022,651 100%
Utah St. George, UT 10.5 12.4 17.8 137,589 100%
Utah Vernal, UT 10.4 3.3 -67.7 29,885 100%
Vermont Statewide 10.1 11.6 14.2 621,270 100%
Vermont Barre, VT 11.9 10.2 -14.3 58,829 100%
Vermont Bennington, VT 2.7 11.0 300.3 36,382 100%
Vermont Burlington-South Burlington, VT 8.7 10.6 21.5 208,460 100%
Vermont Rutland, VT 20.5 11.1 -46.0 63,331 100%
Virginia Statewide 5.9 7.0 17.3 7,769,089 100%
Virginia Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford, VA 13.3 17.7 32.5 158,328 100%
Virginia Charlottesville, VA 5.2 3.6 -30.8 194,391 100%
Virginia Culpeper, VA 8.8 13.0 48.0 46,203 100%
Virginia Danville, VA 7.6 10.4 37.7 105,783 100%
Virginia Harrisonburg, VA 4.3 2.5 -40.5 118,409 100%
Virginia Lynchburg, VA 5.3 4.1 -23.8 245,809 100%
Virginia Martinsville, VA 12.9 27.2 111.6 69,859 100%
Virginia Richmond, VA 4.2 7.8 84.1 1,225,626 100%
Virginia Roanoke, VA 7.1 12.4 75.2 298,108 100%
Virginia Staunton-Waynesboro, VA 6.0 13.7 126.6 117,170 100%
Virginia Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC 6.7 6.2 -7.2 1,634,109 99%
Virginia Winchester, VA-WV NC NC NC 122,369 100%
Washington Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA 15.0 17.0 13.6 3,344,813 100%
Washington King County 17.0 16.3 -4.5 1,875,519 100%
Washington Pierce County 13.7 19.1 39.3 785,639 100%
Washington Snohomish County 10.8 16.7 54.1 683,655 100%
West Virginia Statewide NC NC NC 1,814,468 100%
West Virginia Beckley, WV NC NC NC 79,357 100%
West Virginia Bluefield, WV-VA NC NC NC 105,287 100%
West Virginia Charleston, WV NC NC NC 303,944 100%
West Virginia Kanawha County NC NC NC 191,018 100%
West Virginia Clarksburg, WV NC NC NC 92,212 100%
West Virginia Fairmont, WV NC NC NC 56,496 100%
West Virginia Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH NC NC NC 135,713 48%
West Virginia Morgantown, WV NC NC NC 118,506 100%
West Virginia Oak Hill, WV NC NC NC 46,341 100%
West Virginia Parkersburg-Marietta-Vienna, WV-OH NC NC NC 99,111 62%
West Virginia Point Pleasant, WV-OH NC NC NC 25,678 45%
West Virginia Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH NC NC NC 53,528 44%
West Virginia Wheeling, WV-OH NC NC NC 76,872 53%
Wisconsin Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI 18.7 18.9 0.9 953,328 62%

DESCRIPTION OF PROFILES

DAWN mortality data are reported for metropolitan and micropolitan areas6 with 30 or more drug-related deaths and participating ME/Cs covering more than 50 percent of the area population, and for all participating States in six figures and tables that span two or more pages. These are referred to as "full profiles." Metropolitan areas with fewer than 30 deaths or areas with less than 50 percent coverage receive a brief profile that includes just one of the six tables. Large, individual jurisdictions that are part of a multijurisdictional area and reported 60 or more deaths receive a full profile that is referred to as a "county profile."7

Among the 153 metropolitan areas, full profiles are provided for 46 metropolitan areas. Brief profiles are provided for 107 metropolitan areas that either submitted 30 or fewer drug-related deaths or had less than 50 percent population coverage. County profiles are provided for 50 individual counties. About one third of the nation's population is covered by the ME/Cs participating in DAWN.

The profiles are arranged by State, by metropolitan area within the State, and then by county within the metropolitan area. In several of the larger metropolitan areas, profiles are also provided for subareas within the metropolitan area that may be of interest. For example, while the New York metropolitan area spans multiple counties in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, a profile was developed just for New York City's 5 Boroughs.

The Contents to this publication lists the profiles in the order in which they appear.

Full profiles

The full profile is composed of six exhibits plus a map and demographic information on the State or metropolitan area and its constituent counties. Figure 1 shows the general layout of the full profile. All profiles observe the following conventions:

Map

Each profile begins with a map displaying the boundaries of the metropolitan area or State and its component counties. In this publication, the terms "death investigation jurisdiction" (or, simply, "jurisdiction") and "county" are used interchangeably because ME/Cs' offices are typically organized by county. The one exception occurs in Niagara County, NY, which is divided into four districts. For reporting purposes, the four districts that make up Niagara County, NY, are treated collectively as a single jurisdiction.

Figure 1
Sample metropolitan area profile layout

Figure 1

D

Both participating and nonparticipating jurisdictions are shown in the map. Jurisdictions that provided mortality data for 2008 are colored white. Jurisdictions in the area that did not provide data are shaded light blue. Areas outside of the metropolitan area or State are shaded darker blue.

Metropolitan and micropolitan area definitions used in this publication are those established by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in 2003, based on the 2000 decennial U.S. Census and updated by OMB annually since then.8 By OMB convention, the name of each metropolitan statistical area (MSA) reflects the largest population centers (i.e., cities) in that MSA. If the relative population sizes of cities in an MSA change (i.e., the second largest becomes the largest), OMB changes the name of the MSA to reflect the new order of cities by size (i.e., the name of the larger city will appear first). This publication uses the name of the MSA that was current at the end of the data collection year. Other changes issued by OMB include the adding or deleting of a metropolitan or micropolitan area and changes in the composition of areas. This publication aggregates data and reports on all metropolitan and micropolitan areas identified by OMB at the end of the data collection year and for which DAWN has data from at least one participating ME/C.

Next to the map, the following items appear:

Table A: Metro area overview: Deaths and population by county, 2008

Below the map, Table A lists each of the component jurisdictions for the area. Each jurisdiction is numbered to correspond to the numbers shown on the area map. In metropolitan areas that cross State borders, jurisdictions are ordered first by State and then alphabetically by county name. Nonparticipating jurisdictions are included in the list with a shaded background to distinguish them from participating jurisdictions.

Information in Table A for each jurisdiction includes the following:

The top row of the table totals this information for just the participating jurisdictions.

Rates, because they are population adjusted, can be compared across jurisdictions, metropolitan areas, and States. This standardization does not take into account, however, the differences in applicable laws that specify which deaths are subject to ME/C review or other factors that may confound comparisons.

The subsequent tables and figures (B through F) are based on data aggregated across the participating jurisdictions in each metropolitan area or State.

Figure B: Deaths by manner of death, 2008

Figure B is a pie chart that displays manner of death for drug-related deaths and drug-related suicide deaths. The manner of death reported here is that assigned by the ME/C using the categories provided on the U.S. Standard Certificate of Death. Solid-colored slices are reserved for drug-related deaths other than suicides; the patterned slice shows the suicide deaths. Reading clockwise, the manners of death are identified as follows:

Figure C: Top 5 drugs involved: Drug-related deaths, 2008
Top 5 drugs involved: Drug-related suicide deaths, 2008

Separate bar charts show the five most common types of drugs (e.g., opiates/opioids, benzodiazepines) reported to DAWN for drug-related deaths and drug-related suicide deaths across the participating jurisdictions. The number shown above each bar is the number of deaths reported for a specific drug type. The name of the drug type is printed below each bar. Each bar is partitioned to display separately the portion of deaths involving a single drug type (solid blue area in bottom portion of bar) versus multiple drug types (striped area in top of bar). A bar is not printed if there are fewer than four deaths associated with a drug type, and therefore, fewer than five bars may appear. The top 5 drug types are identified from among 17 different drug types, as listed in Table F (see below).

A single death that involved two drugs of different types (e.g., cocaine and heroin) would be counted in two bars (e.g., cocaine and heroin, respectively). As a result, summing the number of deaths reported in each bar will double-count deaths that involved multiple types of drugs. A death that involved two drugs of the same type (e.g., multiple opiates/opioids, such as methadone and heroin) will be counted once (e.g., in the bar for opiates/opioids).

Grouping drugs by drug type eliminates double counting due to the following causes: redundant drug reports (e.g., "cocaine" and its metabolite "benzoylecgonine" being reported for the same death); redundant reports from nonspecific terms (e.g., "heroin" and "opiates" being reported for the same death); and drug reports that may be indistinguishable (e.g., "heroin" and "morphine").

Figure D: Death rates by gender and age: Drug-related deaths, 2008
Death rates by gender and age: Drug-related suicide deaths, 2008

Figure D displays the gender and categorical age of decedents in drug-related deaths and drug-related suicide deaths, in terms of deaths per 100,000 population. Only population in participating jurisdictions is considered in the calculation of these rates. Taking population size into account enables comparisons to be made across age and gender subgroups.

Table E: Place of death, 2008

Table E reports the place of death for drug-related deaths and drug-related suicide deaths. Deaths in emergency departments and other health care facilities have been combined into the single category "Health care facility."

Table F: Drug-related deaths by drug category, 2007-2008

Table F reports, by drug type or drug, the count of drug-related deaths and drug-related suicide deaths for 2007 and 2008. The first row of Table F summarizes deaths across all drug categories; the subsequent rows provide detail for 17 specific drug types or drugs of particular interest.

Data for both 2007 and 2008 are reported when the same jurisdictions participated in both years. If comparable data for 2007 are not available (e.g., the State of West Virginia did not participate in 2007) or are not comparable to those shown for 2008 (e.g., in the Denver metropolitan area, Broomfield and Park counties participated in 2008 but not in 2007), the 2007 columns are left blank.

Counts of drug-related deaths and drug-related suicide deaths include deaths that involved both single and multiple drugs. Summing these deaths across drug types or drugs could result in double counting deaths associated with multiple drug types. To help provide a better understanding of single-drug versus multidrug involvement, counts of single-drug deaths are reported. Single-drug deaths involve the listed drug type or drug and no other, and they are a subset of the total count of deaths.

The 17 drug categories shown in this table are derived from DAWN's standard drug classification scheme and include the following:10

The next six rows in Table F pertain to illicit drugs:

The remaining rows in Table F are devoted to prescription and over-the-counter pharmaceuticals. For this table, heroin is categorized and reported on as an opiate/opioid. Low-frequency drugs have been aggregated into higher-level categories:

Limitations to data

Not every reported substance (drug) is, by itself, the cause of death or even a contributor to the death. DAWN's broad definition of drug involvement requires only that the drug is related to the death. Therefore, even in single-drug deaths, reported drugs may not be a direct cause of death. Furthermore, incidental reporting (i.e., reporting of drugs unrelated to the death) is unavoidable due to ambiguities and insufficiencies in the ME/C records.

The total number of deaths in some drug categories is often quite small and of limited significance. The intent in reporting small counts is primarily to indicate the relative occurrence of deaths in different drug categories.

Numbers less than four but greater than zero are suppressed.

Brief profiles for selected metropolitan areas

To warrant a full profile, the participating jurisdictions of a metropolitan area in combination must have reported more than 30 drug-related deaths or drug-related suicide deaths, and the area's population coverage must exceed 50 percent. If either of these two conditions was not met, a brief profile is provided for the area. In contrast to full profiles, brief profiles include only a map and Table A (see above).

County profiles

County profiles are produced for individual jurisdictions in which 60 or more drug-related deaths were reported. The purpose is to distinguish findings for a single location from those of the metropolitan area as a whole. County profiles may appear for jurisdictions even if the metropolitan area itself had less than 50 percent population coverage. In some instances, even if a jurisdiction has 60 or more deaths, a county profile may not be needed. Such is the case when a metropolitan area contains only one county or had only one county participating in DAWN.

County profiles have essentially the same format as the full metropolitan area profile. County profiles include the map; Figures B, C, and D; and Tables E and F, as described above. Because of the small numbers, drug-related suicide deaths have been removed from all exhibits except the jurisdiction summary and Figure B.

State profiles

Twelve statewide ME/C systems participated in DAWN in 2008. A full profile is provided for each of the following States:

A Glossary of Terms used in this report appears in Appendix B. Additional detail on the DAWN data collection methodology is provided in Appendix C.

End Notes

1 DAWN uses the terms "death investigation jurisdiction" (or, simply, "jurisdiction") and "county" interchangeably because ME/Cs' offices are typically organized by county. The one exception occurs in Niagara County, NY, which is divided into four districts. For reporting purposes, the four districts that make up Niagara County, NY, are treated collectively as a single jurisdiction.

2 To be reportable, a nonpharmaceutical substance must be consumed by inhalation, sniffing, or snorting and must have a psychoactive effect when inhaled. Carbon monoxide is excluded from the inhalants reportable to DAWN, as is accidental inhalation of a nonpharmaceutical. Additional information on inhalants is provided in Appendix B: Glossary of Terms.

3 There is overlap between the metropolitan areas and States. In total, usable reports were received from 544 jurisdictions: 97 are only in metropolitan areas, 171 are only in States, and 276 are in both.

4 DAWN uses the metropolitan area definitions established by the Office of Management and Budget in 2000 and updated in 2003. See Appendix C for additional detail.

5 Recruitment efforts to increase participation by ME/Cs are ongoing. However, there are no plans to make the mortality component of DAWN national in scope or representative of nonparticipating jurisdictions.

6 For brevity, when this publication refers to metropolitan areas, the term includes both metropolitan and micropolitan areas.

7 If a metropolitan area has only one participating county, a separate profile is not provided for the county, as the reported data would be identical to that provided for the metropolitan area.

8 Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Revised Definitions of Metropolitan Statistical Areas, New Definitions of Micropolitan Statistical Areas and Combined Statistical Areas, and Guidance on Uses of the Statistical Definitions of These Areas, Bulletin No. 03-04, June 6, 2003. (Available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/bulletins/b03-04.html.). Updates describing new metropolitan or micropolitan areas and changes to existing area are provided annually by OMB. (Available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/bulletins_default.)

9 Population estimates for 2007 and 2008 were obtained from the U.S. Census Bureau County-Level Population Estimates (CPOP file), Vintage 2008, released August 6, 2009. (Available at http://www.census.gov/popest/estimates.html.)

10 The classification of drugs used by DAWN is derived from the Multum Lexicon, © 2010, Multum Information Services, Inc. The classification has been modified to meet DAWN's unique requirements. The Multum Licensing Agreement governing use of the Lexicon is provided in Appendix A. (Also available at http://www.multum.com/.)

11 Some examples may assist readers in interpreting this classification. A death that involved heroin and methadone would be counted in the "Opiates/opioids" row, in the "Heroin (specified)" row, and in the "Methadone" row. A death that involved morphine would be counted in the "Opiates/opioids" row and in the "All other opiates/opioids" row. A death that involved both morphine and codeine would be counted in the "Opiates/opioids" row and in the "All other opiates/opioids" row.

12 Note that morphine and unspecified opiates are not grouped in the "Heroin (specified)" category. Morphine is not classified as heroin because it is not possible to differentiate morphine, the metabolite of heroin, from morphine itself. Most drugs in the category "Heroin (specified)" were reported to DAWN as heroin or its metabolite monoacetylmorphine. A few were reported as acetylmorphine, diacetylmorphine, acetylcodeine, monoacetylcodeine, heroin dope, or black tar heroin.

13 The term "morphine" or "free morphine" accounted for most drug reports classified as "morphine," and the term "opiates" accounted for most of the unspecified opiates.

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