Eight hundred and sixty-eight.
That’s how many people have died from a fentanyl overdose in Multnomah County during the past six years, according to a first-of-its-kind report published by the county’s health department.
The findings illustrate what many across the county — and the state — say they’ve experienced.
“In 2018, the fentanyl-related overdose death rate in Multnomah County was lower than the fentanyl related overdose death rate across the United States,” the report states.
However, by 2022, “deaths in the county surpassed the national average.”
FILE - A man who was just revived from a near-fatal overdose climbs into the back of an ambulance, Dec. 13, 2023. Eight hundred and sixty-eight people have died from a fentanyl overdose in Multnomah County during the past six years, according to a first-of-its-kind report published by the county’s health department.
Kristyna Wentz-Graff / OPB
For example, in 2018 and 2019, an average of two people per month in Multnomah County died from a fentanyl overdose, the report states. By last year, the average number rose to nearly 36 deaths per month.
“More than one per day,” Emily Mosites, the county’s epidemiology manager, said Tuesday. “The rise has been very sharp. We did surpass King County in our overdose rates, and we’re now similar to San Francisco.”
The spike in fentanyl-related deaths in Oregon’s largest county coincided with the potent and highly addictive substance entering Oregon’s drug supply in huge quantities starting in 2020, according to law enforcement seizure data.
“Each death counted in this report represents a real person, the grief and heartbreak of those close to them, and the trauma felt throughout our community as a result of their loss,” Multnomah County Health Department Director Rachael Banks said in a statement.
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According to the county report, most of the overdose deaths last year were in Portland’s Old Town and Pearl neighborhoods, near where many of the metro area’s social service providers operate. The county’s report found 20% of fentanyl overdose deaths were of people who were likely experiencing homelessness. That rose to 25% last year, according to 2023 provisional data, though the county cautioned the actual numbers for the county’s homeless population may be higher.
Demographically, most of the people who died from a fentanyl overdose were white men between 35 and 44.
“When accounting for population sizes, the rate of overdose was much higher for American Indian/Alaska Native and Black/African American communities compared to other communities,” according to the county’s health report. “Additionally, the rate of overdose deaths more than doubled between 2021 and 2022 for people with reported Hispanic ethnicity, suggesting a trend towards an increasing inequity.”
The county tracks overdose deaths in real time, initially listing them as suspected until the medical examiner determines drugs to be a contributing factor or the cause of death.
So far in 2024, there are 278 suspected overdose deaths and 47 confirmed in Multnomah County.
