Potential undercounting of overdose deaths caused by specific drugs in vital statistics data: An analysis of Florida.

Abstract

Due largely to ambiguous or incomplete information provided on death certificates, the widely cited Multiple Cause of Death (MCOD) data reported by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been shown to undercount the number of fatal overdoses caused by specific drugs. However, the extent of the undercounts is unclear. We obtained the number of fatal overdoses from 2003 to 2017 in Florida caused by the three drug groups (amphetamines, benzodiazepines, and opioids) and three drugs (methadone, cocaine, and heroin) that we could map across the MCOD data and data reported by the Florida Medical Examiners Commission (FMEC). The FMEC data are based on state-mandated reporting of the causal drugs in overdose deaths. We analyzed the differences across all deaths and by gender, age group, and race. Depending on the drug, the numbers of deaths across all individuals reported in the FMEC data ranged from 19 %-39 % higher than the counts in the MCOD data. The differences varied over time and by some demographic factors. The MCOD data appear to undercount the number of fatal overdoses caused by the drugs we investigated. Our analysis did not identify a cause or pattern to explain the differences. Efforts to improve the reporting of fatal overdoses may enhance our understanding of and subsequently may improve the response to the drug overdose epidemic.