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SALT LAKE CITY — Aug. 31 is worldwide International Overdose Awareness Day, and communities across Utah are gathering to remember those who have died from substance use, and show community support for those in need of healing.
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox ordered all flags be lowered to half-staff from sunrise to sunset on Saturday to recognize the day.
Data from the National Center for Health Statistics shows there were 627 deaths across the state in 2022, or around 52 deaths per month. Overdose deaths increased by 24 between 2021 and 2022; 67% of those overdose deaths in 2021 were opioid-related, and 29% involved fentanyl, the Utah Department of Health and Human Services reports.
Utah has the seventh-lowest per capita overdose death rate in the nation, at 19.8 in every 100,000 people. West Virginia had the highest rate of death from drug overdose, at 80.9.
But the most recent projections by the Centers for Disease Control show that Utah is one of only a handful of states where overdoses increased between March 2023 and March 2024. While the numbers are not finalized, predictions show an over 9% increase in overdose deaths in the state, despite the nationwide drop of 7.5%.
Other western states, like Nevada, Wyoming and Colorado mirror this trend, even with underreporting due to incomplete data.
Volunteers at many of the vigils, hoping to buck the trend, will be distributing free naloxone kits and providing instructions on how to use the kits, so community members can act quickly if an overdose occurs. A majority of these events are organized by the group A Light to Remember, with the help of local partners.
"Our goal is to save lives and reduce the stigma surrounding substance use disorder," said Michelle Church, executive director of the organization in a prepared statement. "By equipping people with naloxone and the knowledge of how to use it, we're not just raising awareness; we're giving people the tools they need to protect their loved ones and communities."
To combat overdose deaths in the state, many community and governmental organizations are now providing free naloxone kits that can help reverse overdoses from heroin and prescription opioids, as well as fentanyl test strips.
International Overdose Awareness Day signals the beginning of National Recovery Month, which was ordered by President Joe Biden on Friday to support "more than 21 million Americans in recovery from substance use disorder."
Vigils happening Saturday
- Stansbury Park — 7:30-9 p.m. at the Stansbury Park Clubhouse, about 5 miles north of Tooele
- Roosevelt — 7-9 p.m. at Central Park
- Ogden — 7-9 p.m. at the Ogden Botanical Gardens
- Murray — 6:30-9 p.m. at the Wheeler Historic Farm
- Logan — 6-9 p.m. at the Cache County Fairgrounds
- Salt Lake City — 6-8 p.m. on the Utah Capitol south steps
- Huntington — 6-8:30 p.m. at Huntington Lake State Park
- Moab — 6-8 p.m. at Rotary Park
- St. George — 10-11:30 a.m. at Sandtown Park
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