Gov. Ron DeSantis was in Titusville Wednesday, May 13, touting a big drop in drug overdose deaths is Florida.
At a press conference at the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office substation, he announced overdose death fell by 19% in the first half of last year, according to a new report.
Opioid deaths dropped by 42% and fentanyl deaths specifically fell by 46% in the first half of 2025, according to the Interim Drugs Identified in Deceased Persons Report from the Florida Medical Examiners Commission.
“A few years ago anywhere you looked somebody had either lost a loved one or a friend, or a family member to an overdose. I don’t think anybody at that time would have thought it was possible to see a 46% reduction. We were just trying to stop the increase,” DeSantis added.
Cocaine-related deaths fell by 24% with meth-related deaths dropping by 31% in the same reporting period, DeSantis said.
DeSantis also said that those numbers are expected to go down further once the report for the second half of 2025 is completed.
The governor on Wednesday was joined by Florida Department of Law Enforcement Commissioner Mark Glass, Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles executive director Dave Kerner, Florida Department of Corrections secretary Ricky Dixon, and Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey.
Glass said he expects the numbers of overdose-related deaths to go down further as new numbers come out. In 2021, Glass said the state had around 5,791 deaths caused by fentanyl and related drugs. Last year the total number is expected to be around 1,500, he said at the press conference.
Glass praised the work of law enforcement officers in the state for the efforts in getting the substances off the streets.
“Fentanyl is so dangerous to the touch. They’re putting themselves at risk to make sure we have numbers like this,” Glass said.
DeSantis said he is recommending $13.5 million in pay increases for law enforcement officers across the state as part of the state legislature’s special session.
Tyler Vazquez is the Growth and Development Reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Vazquez at 321-480-0854 or tvazquez@floridatoday.com. X: @tyler_vazquez.
This article originally appeared on Florida Today: DeSantis says Florida fentanyl deaths dropped 46%
Reporting by Tyler Vazquez, Florida Today / Florida Today
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