Injury and Violence Prevention Branch

Poisoning Data

Deaths, hospitalizations, and emergency department (ED) visits due to poisoning, particularly medication and drug poisoning, have become a growing public health concern nationally and in North Carolina. Since 1999 the number of drug poisoning deaths in North Carolina has increased by 440%, from 363 to 1,965 in 2016. Additionally, in 2014 there were nearly 12,000 hospitalizations and almost 22,000 ED visits related to medication and drug poisoning. (More recent hospital and ED data are not currently available due to a coding transition.)

Historically, prescription drugs have been a major driver of this epidemic. However, illicit drugs are also contributing to this problem in increasing numbers. Heroin or other synthetic narcotics (like fentanyl) were involved in over 60 percent of unintentional opioid deaths in 2016. The number of cocaine overdose deaths is also on the rise.

Visit Poisoning Prevention and  Unintentional Poisoning from Prescription Drugs for more information on preventing poisoning deaths in North Carolina.

N.C. Summary Data

• NC Overdose Data: Trends and Surveillance is a recorded presentation of core overdose data.
  • Download the slides: Core Overdose Data Slides July 2018 (PPTX, 7.6 MB)
• The Prescription and Drug Overdose Fact Sheet (PDF, 180 KB) provides a snapshot of prescription drug overdose deaths.
• The Opioid-related Overdose Fact Sheet provides information specific to the opioid epidemic.

N.C. Opioid Action Plan Data Dashboard - Updated Quarterly

• Data dashboard to track and monitor the N.C. Opioid Action Plan metrics; data available for the state and individual counties.
• North Carolina’s Opioid Action Plan

County Overdose Slide Sets

Note: When downloading and opening a slide set, within PowerPoint you may see a security notice warning you about links to other files. If so, you can ignore the notice and click the "Cancel" button to continue opening the file. Do not click the "Update Links" button.

Select County Alamance Alexander Alleghany Anson Ashe Avery Beaufort Bertie Bladen Brunswick Buncombe Burke Cabarrus Caldwell Camden Carteret Caswell Catawba Chatham Cherokee Chowan Clay Cleveland Columbus Craven Cumberland Currituck Dare Davidson Davie Duplin Durham Edgecombe Forsyth Franklin Gaston Gates Graham Granville Greene Guilford Halifax Harnett Haywood Henderson Hertford Hoke Hyde Iredell Jackson Johnston Jones Lee Lenoir Lincoln Macon Madison Martin McDowell Mecklenburg Mitchell Montgomery Moore Nash New Hanover Northampton Onslow Orange Pamlico Pasquotank Pender Perquimans Person Pitt Polk Randolph Richmond Robeson Rockingham Rowan Rutherford Sampson Scotland Stanly Stokes Surry Swain Transylvania Tyrrell Union Vance Wake Warren Washington Watauga Wayne Wilkes Wilson Yadkin Yancey

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NC DETECT Opioid Overdose ED Visits Reports - Updated Monthly

• July 2018 Opioid Surveillance ED Data (PDF, 202 KB)
• July 2018 Opioid Overdose Emergency Department Visits Heat Maps (PDF, 217 KB)
• County Opioid Overdose Emergency Department Visit Reports (For counties with average monthly visits ≥ 5) 
  • Alamance (PDF, 101 KB)
  • Buncombe (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Burke (PDF, 101 KB)
  • Cabarrus (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Catawba (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Craven (PDF, 99 KB)
  • Cumberland (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Davidson (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Durham (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Forsyth (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Gaston (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Guilford (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Harnett (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Haywood (PDF, 99 KB)
  • Henderson (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Iredell (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Lee (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Lincoln (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Mecklenburg (PDF, 100 KB)
  • New Hanover (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Onslow (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Pitt (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Randolph (PDF, 101 KB)
  • Robeson (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Rockingham (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Rowan (PDF, 101 KB)
  • Stanly (PDF, 99 KB)
  • Surry (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Union (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Vance (PDF, 100 KB)
  • Wake (PDF, 101 KB)
  • Wayne (PDF, 100 KB)
• Archive  

  County Archive  

  2017 Opioid Overdose Emergency Department Visits

  • Alamance (PDF, 139 KB)
  • Buncombe (PDF, 141 KB)
  • Cabarrus (PDF, 140 KB)
  • Catawba (PDF, 139 KB)
  • Craven (PDF, 139 KB)
  • Cumberland (PDF, 140 KB)
  • Davidson (PDF, 139 KB)
  • Durham (PDF, 139 KB)
  • Forsyth (PDF, 139 KB)
  • Guilford (PDF, 142 KB)
  • Iredell (PDF, 138 KB)
  • Mecklenburg (PDF, 141 KB)
  • New Hanover (PDF, 139 KB)
  • Rowan (PDF, 139 KB)
  • Union (PDF, 140 KB)
  • Wake (PDF, 141 KB)

  Monthly Statewide Report Archive  

  2018

  • June 2018 Opioid Surveillance ED Data (PDF, 199 KB)
  • May 2018 Opioid Surveillance ED Data (PDF, 171 KB)
  • April 2018 Opioid Surveillance ED Data (PDF, 189 KB)
  • March 2018 Opioid Surveillance ED Data (PDF, 264 KB)
  • February 2018 Opioid Surveillance ED Data (PDF, 375 KB)
  • January 2018 Emergency Department Visits for Opioid Overdose (PDF, 461 KB)

  2017

  • December 2017 Emergency Department Visits for Opioid Overdose (PDF, 468 KB)
  • November 2017 Emergency Department Visits for Opioid Overdose (PDF, 467 KB)
  • October 2017 Emergency Department Visits for Opioid Overdose (PDF, 471 KB)
  • September 2017 Emergency Department Visits for Opioid Overdose (PDF, 453 KB)
  • August 2017 Emergency Department Visits for Opioid Overdose (PDF, 466 KB)
  • July 2017 Emergency Department Visits for Opioid Overdose (PDF, 461 KB)

  Monthly Heat Map Archive  

  2018

  • June 2018 Opioid Overdose Emergency Department Visits Heat Maps (PDF, 194 KB)
  • May 2018 Opioid Overdose Emergency Department Visits Heat Maps (PDF, 260 KB)
  • April 2018 Opioid Overdose Emergency Department Visits Heat Maps (PDF, 223 KB)
  • March 2018 Opioid Overdose Emergency Department Visits Heat Maps (PDF, 305 KB)
  • February 2018 Opioid Overdose Emergency Department Visits Heat Maps (PDF, 292 KB)
  • January 2018 Opioid Overdose Emergency Department Visits Map (PDF, 459 KB)

  2017

  • December 2017 Opioid Overdose Emergency Department Visits Map (PDF, 514 KB)
  • November 2017 Opioid Overdose Emergency Department Visits Map (PDF, 535 KB)
  • October 2017 Opioid Overdose Emergency Department Visits Map (PDF, 600 KB)
  • September 2017 Opioid Overdose Emergency Department Visits Map (PDF, 592 KB)
  • August 2017 Opioid Overdose Emergency Department Visits Map (PDF, 593 KB)
  • July 2017 Opioid Overdose Emergency Department Visits Map (PDF, 600 KB)

NC OCME Poisoning Deaths Surveillance Reports - Updated Monthly

• NC OCME Overdose Surveillance, Updated 08/15/18
• Additional NC OCME data and reports can be found at http://www.ocme.dhhs.nc.gov/annreport/index.shtml.

NC Harm Reduction Slides - Updated Monthly

• NC Harm Reduction Data Slides July 2018 (PDF, 2.6 MB)
• Archive  

  2018

  • NC Harm Reduction Data Slides June 2018 (PDF, 2.8 MB)
  • NC Harm Reduction Data Slides May 2018 (PDF, 2.9 MB)
  • NC Harm Reduction Data Slides April 2018 (PDF, 2.9 MB)
  • NC Harm Reduction Data Slides March 2018 (PDF, 2.9 MB)
  • NC Harm Reduction Data Slides February 2018 (PDF, 2.9 MB)
  • NC Harm Reduction Data Slides January 2018 (PDF, 3 MB)

  2017

  • NC Harm Reduction Data Slides December 2017 (PDF, 3 MB)
  • NC Harm Reduction Data Slides November 2017 (PDF, 2.8 MB)
  • NC Harm Reduction Data Slides October 2017 (PDF, 5.3 MB)

Annual Data Summaries

• 2017 Emergency Department (ED) Data Newsletter (PDF, 270 KB)

County-Level Poisoning Data Tables

See the topics below for data on various types of poisoning at the county level.  Please see the footnotes at the bottom of each table for a description of each type of poisoning.

 Death Data: by Intent, Drug Type, and County

 Hospital Data: by Intent, Drug Type, and County

 N.C. DETECT Emergency Department (ED) Data: by Intent, Drug Type, and County

 Prescribing and Population Data: by County

 Archived Data