Drug-related deaths in New Hampshire fell 33.4% from 2023 to 2024, the sharpest single-year decline in more than a decade, a new study released Tuesday by the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute shows.

In 2024, 287 Granite Staters died from drug-related causes, down from a peak of 490 in 2017.

The study indicates the number of fatalities could continue to fall. Preliminary data from 2025 shows an estimated 77 drug-related deaths though the first six months of the year, down from 122 across the first six months of 2024.

Last year marked the second consecutive year the number of drug fatalities decreased in New Hampshire, coming on the heels of an 11.5% drop from 2022 to 2023.

The study, published as October’s National Substance Use and Misuse Prevention Month begins, analyzed a decade

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