Kentucky shatters its fatal overdose record; fentanyl blamed

Fatal drug overdoses rose nearly 15% in Kentucky last year, surpassing 2,000 deaths as the increased use of fentanyl — a powerful synthetic opioid — resulted in a record death toll in the state, according to a report released Monday.

The report showed that 2,250 Kentuckians died from drug overdoses in 2021 — an ongoing scourge plaguing rural counties and the state’s largest cities alike. It was the first time the Bluegrass State surpassed 2,000 drug overdose deaths in a single year, said Van Ingram, executive director of the state Office of Drug Control Policy.

The state’s rising death count mirrored the nation’s escalating overdose epidemic. Last year, for the first time, more than 100,000 Americans died of drug overdoses over a 12-month period, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with about two-thirds of those deaths linked to fentanyl and other synthetic drugs.