NEW YORK — New York City’s drug overdose deaths soared by 27% in 2021, with four in every five linked to fentanyl as the city’s Black community and the Bronx reported a disproportionately highest number of fatalities, city officials said.
“These deaths are heartbreaking,” said city Heath Commissioner Dr. Ashwan Vasan. “And many, if not most, are preventable. As a city we must use every evidence-based tool at our disposal to reach people with services and — most of all — support and compassion.”
The new provisional data found 2,668 New Yorkers died in 2021, an increase of 78% from 2019 and 27% from the figures for 2020.
