Opioid overdoses in the United States.

The November 2011 issue of the online bulletin CDC Vital Signs posted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the U.S. Public Health Service entitled "Prescription Painkiller Overdoses in the U.S." addressed epidemiologic aspects of drug overdose deaths in the United States due to opioids. A subsequent blog posting on the CDC Directors Blog entitled "Prescription Drug Overdose in the United States: Blog Q&A" also addresses this important issue. Statistics on overdose deaths and strategies for improvement by all stakeholders are provided.