(The Center Square) – Fentanyl deaths in Colorado dropped last year, but still had an economic toll of $13.1 billion, a new report says.
That amounts to a cost of $2,220 per resident, according to the report by the Common Sense Institute, a free-enterprise think tank in the state.
Fentanyl-related deaths dropped from 1,184 in December 2023 to 801 in November 2024, a 32.4% reduction but still well above death rates prior to 2020.
“The economic and human toll of fentanyl in Colorado remains staggering,” John Kellner, a CSI criminal justice fellow and former district attorney, said in a news release. “Even modest reductions in overdose deaths can translate into billions in savings and, more importantly, hundreds of lives saved. Policymakers have a clear opportunity — and obligation — to act.”
Fentanyl-related seizures at the U.S. border have declined, CSI noted in its report. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency’s Rocky Mountain Field Division seized a record 2.7 million fentanyl pills last year, The Center Square previously reported.
CSI estimated the $13.1 billion economic cost figure using Centers for Disease Control and Prevention methodology that estimated costs of opioid deaths in several states and the District of Columbia.
The report also points to a 2022 Colorado law that put in place stricter penalties for fentanyl possession and distribution as progress toward combatting fentanyl deaths.
CSI recommends lawmakers put back in place stronger penalties for possession and distribution of other drugs like cocaine and methamphetamine that often contain fentanyl, which the 2022 law failed to address.
The think tank also calls for a “comprehensive public health strategy, paired with targeted law enforcement and community support,” as well as more education programs for youth in the state.
“Measures that continue the work established in 2022 could be bolstered with additional penalties and supplemented with a targeted public health campaign complete with rigorous performance tracking,” CSI said.
This week, Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser announced the state is set to receive a $76 million out of a $7.4 billion national settlement with Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family for their role in the opioid crisis.
