How many drug overdose deaths happen every year in Virginia?
Updated May. 6, 2026Refreshed annually
There were 1,552 overdose deaths in 2024. That means that for every 100,000 people living in the state, 17.6 died of drug overdose. This was the fifth highest the drug overdose death rate has been in the state since data from 1999 became available.
In 2024
18
per 100,000 people died of overdoses
In 2024
1.55K
people died of overdoses
Unadjusted data about the nation is a useful starting point, but age-adjusted data tells a more complete story. Age-adjusting accounts for differences in age distributions across populations, which is crucial when comparing health outcomes since age is a major risk factor for many conditions. This adjustment enables fairer comparisons of mortality rates between different groups or over time. The rest of the data on this page is age-adjusted.
In 2024, Virginia had a drug overdose death rate lower than the US rate overall, nearly 24% lower. The drug overdose death rate in Virginia increased in 18 of the last 25 years in which data is available. The overdose death rate increased 50% since 2014 and decreased 4% since 2019.
In 2024, Virginia had a drug overdose death rate lower than the US rate.
Drug-involved overdose deaths in Virginia, age-adjusted rate per 100,000 people
What drugs are most commonly involved in drug overdose deaths?
The rise in drug overdose deaths nationally has been due to growing use of fentanyl and other synthetic opioids, however, this may vary by state. In 2024, fentanyl and other synthetic opioids have been involved in more overdose deaths than any other drug, making up 68% of total overdose deaths in Virginia. The rates of drug overdose deaths involving Cocaine and Fentanyl and other synthetic opioids increased 6.1 and 41.0 times, between 1999 and 2024, respectively.
In 2024, fentanyl and other synthetic opioids was involved in more overdose deaths than any other drug.
Drug-involved overdose deaths in Virginia, age-adjusted rate per 100,000 people
How do drug overdose deaths vary by county in Virginia?
Drug overdose death rates can vary across counties. In 2024, the death rate for overdoses in Virginia ranged from 5.4 per 100,000 in Loudoun County to 69.8 per 100,000 in Buchanan County.
Occasionally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will mark data as either suppressed or unreliable. Suppression occurs when data does not meet confidentiality requirements. As a result, data may not be available for every county in this state. Age-adjusted data is also not available at the county level. County-level tables reflect the most recent year of available data.
Drug-involved overdose deaths per 100,000 people (2024)
| 1. | Buchanan County | 69.8 |
| 2. | Roanoke city | 64.3 |
| 3. | Richmond city | 56.5 |
| 4. | Tazewell County | 48.9 |
| 5. | Hopewell city | 47.9 |
| 6. | Portsmouth city | 47.7 |
| 7. | Pulaski County | 47.6 |
| 8. | Petersburg city | 47.0 |
| 9. | Henry County | 38.5 |
| 10. | Danville city | 33.3 |
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Methodology
USAFacts standardizes data, in areas such as time and demographics, to make it easier to understand and compare.
The analysis was generated with the help of AI and reviewed by USAFacts for accuracy.
Page sources
USAFacts endeavors to share the most up-to-date information available. We sourced the data on this page directly from government agencies; however, the intervals at which agencies publish updated data vary.
