Suffolk County 2016 & 2017 Total Opiate Overdose Deaths

The term “opioid” refers to any substance that stimulates the body’s opioid receptors, whether that substance is naturally derived directly from the opium poppy, termed an opiate (e.g., morphine, codeine); semisynthetic opioid, created by chemical modification of an opiate (e.g., heroin, oxycodone, oxymorphone, hydrocodone, and hydromorphone); or synthetic opioid, defined as a chemical not derived from an opiate that is capable of binding to an opioid receptor and producing clinical opioid effects (e.g., methadone, fentanyl, tramadol). “Total opioid deaths” encompasses all deaths in which a single or multiple opioids, with or without other classes of drugs, is determined to have caused the death. These are the Suffolk County Total Opiate Overdose Deaths for 2016 and 2017