Statistical Study of Drug Overdose Fatalities

Analyzing the Influence of Multiple Contributing Factors

Abstract

The presence of various different drugs in society, although some with good intent, contributes greatly to the number of deaths in the United States. Drug overdose deaths, the most common form of drug death with over 100,000 deaths, has been recorded as steadily increasing in the United States every year with many states reporting up to 20% increases in number of deaths from previous years. More Research is needed on this compounding issue from the social and statistical perspectives to help mitigate this societal challenge. To aid these efforts, this study provides a thorough overview of many crucial contributing factors to the issue of drug overdose deaths through a statistical and data visualization perspective and serves baseline for further research and data analysis on this problem.