New Jersey Addiction Research 2025: Abuse Facts, Overdose Rates, and Rehabilitation Statistics

In 2021, the number of overdose deaths in New Jersey (NJ) rose to an all-time high of 3047—likely a result of lockdown-caused distress and the COVID-19 pandemic. Since then, the number has dropped to 2778 in 2023 and 1180 in the first eight months of 2024. According to the New Jersey Office of the Chief State Medical Examiner, there have been 306 suspected drug deaths reported in the first quarter of 2025.

But while NJ drug overdose deaths have fallen sharply in the past two years, they’re still alarmingly high. Let’s look at some statistics about the state’s substance abuse problems.

Key Takeaways:

• From January to August 2024, New Jersey experienced 1,180 suspected overdose deaths, with April being the month with the highest number of fatalities.
• In the first eight months of 2024, the average number of overdose deaths per month in New Jersey’s 21 counties was 147.5.
• Drug overdose deaths declined in 17 of New Jersey’s 21 counties during the first half of 2024, with Cape May, Somerset, and Hunterdon seeing increases.
• The majority of overdose deaths between January and August 2024 were among males (847), with females accounting for 319 deaths.
• People aged 35-44 had the highest rate of drug overdoses in New Jersey between January and August 2024.
• In 2023, there were 2,778 overdose deaths in New Jersey, with Essex and Camden counties having the highest numbers.
• In 2022, alcohol and heroin were the most misused substances in New Jersey, with 31,807 and 30,933 users, respectively. 

General Insights 

General substance abuse, overdose, and rehabilitation statistics for New Jersey include:

• From January 2025 to April 2025, there were 306 suspected drug overdose deaths in New Jersey, according to the NJ Office of the Chief State Medical Examiner (OCSME).
• In the first few months of 2025, suspected drug deaths have been tracked weekly, with a total of 18 deaths reported for the week of April 7-13, 2025. According to the demographics, 72% of these victims were White, 17% were Black, and 11% were Hispanic, with males accounting for 61% of the deaths.
• Based on the year-to-date data through April 12, 2025, the state has recorded 297 suspected drug deaths. The age groups most affected include 35-44 year-olds (74 deaths), 55-64 year-olds (77 deaths), and 45-54 year-olds (61 deaths). Other significant age groups include 25-34 year-olds (39 deaths) and 65-74 year-olds (27 deaths).

• In the first quarter of 2025, drug deaths were reported across all 21 counties in NJ. Essex County had the highest number of suspected drug deaths, followed by Camden and Middlesex counties. Hunterdon County reported the lowest number of deaths.
• Out of the 297 people who died from suspected drug overdoses between January and April 12, 2025, 193 were male (65%) and 102 were female (34%), with some gender data not recorded.
• According to the NJ OCSME dashboard, of those who died from suspected drug overdoses between January and April 12, 2025, 166 were White (56%), 81 were Black (27%), and 42 were Hispanic (14%), with some race data not recorded.
• People aged 35-44 were the demographic with the highest rate of suspected drug overdoses in NJ during the first quarter of 2025, followed closely by those aged 45-54 and 25-34.

• According to data from OCSME, there were 1,803 suspected drug overdose deaths in New Jersey in 2024, with Essex County (309 deaths) and Camden County (206 deaths) reporting the highest numbers.

County	January	February	March	April	May	June	July	August	September	October	November	December	Total
Atlantic	18	10	10	15	18	10	19	12	13	14	11	10	160
Bergen	7	7	14	11	10	11	10	7	5	3	5	3	93
Burlington	12	8	6	3	10	9	5	9	10	7	3	5	87
Camden	20	22	15	26	10	16	19	15	17	18	11	17	206
Cape May	4	3	3	6	1	1	2	5	4	2	3	1	35
Cumberland	6	4	9	4	6	3	6	11	6	5	2	2	64
Essex	34	31	22	32	30	33	25	24	28	11	19	20	309
Gloucester	3	4	12	5	10	2	7	4	5	4	2	5	63
Hudson	6	7	10	17	5	12	10	12	7	5	2	6	99
Hunterdon	0	3	1	0	1	1	1	0	2	0	0	1	10
Mercer	5	11	6	8	3	7	5	7	4	6	3	5	70
Middlesex	9	10	11	10	16	7	5	11	5	9	1	4	98
Monmouth	10	10	7	8	7	7	8	14	4	5	4	2	86
Morris	8	5	1	3	4	2	8	1	2	5	3	3	45
Ocean	12	7	14	11	5	6	11	10	10	11	5	8	110
Passaic	8	13	4	11	8	8	8	10	7	1	6	5	89
Salem	2	0	3	1	0	0	2	1	0	1	1	4	15
Somerset	5	7	4	3	4	5	0	2	1	1	1	2	35
Sussex	4	4	1	3	2	2	2	0	2	1	2	0	23
Union	8	5	4	10	12	2	5	8	10	7	11	7	89
Warren	1	2	3	1	0	1	4	2	3	0	0	0	17

Source: ocsme.nj.gov

• According to the 2022 Substance Use Statewide Overview, there were 18,137 intravenous drug users in New Jersey in 2022. 
• In 2022, 31,807 (37%) of NJ residents used alcohol, 30,933 (36%) used heroin, 6,553 (8%) used other opiates, 5,005 (6%) used cocaine, 5,610 (7%) used synthetic cannabinoids/marijuana, 3,172 (2%) used methamphetamine/other stimulants, and 3,172 (4%) used other drugs.  
• According to the New Jersey Department of Human Services, Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services, there were a total of 85,266 treatment admissions for drug complications and rehabilitation in NJ in 2022.  
• Out of the 85,266 people admitted for treatment in NJ, 16,505 received outpatient care, 17,244 got detox residential care, and 17,207 received intensive outpatient care. 

• In 2023, there were a total of 2,573 suspected drug overdose deaths, according to OCSME.
• In 2023, Essex and Camden had the highest rates of drug-related deaths at 448 and 327, respectively.

County	January	February	March	April	May	June	July	August	September	October	November	December	Total
Atlantic	20	14	23	15	9	19	13	12	13	13	16	13	180
Bergen	11	16	19	11	11	11	4	9	11	9	7	10	129
Burlington	14	11	7	13	16	10	15	7	9	10	9	7	128
Camden	29	19	33	37	35	27	19	30	25	27	22	24	327
Cape May	2	2	2	5	2	0	7	5	1	3	3	2	34
Cumberland	7	10	4	5	11	9	3	4	8	8	5	3	77
Essex	40	33	33	50	38	37	34	48	27	44	26	38	448
Gloucester	3	8	7	8	5	8	9	7	7	6	6	8	82
Hudson	20	12	13	15	19	17	23	16	11	16	15	10	187
Hunterdon	1	0	0	0	2	1	2	2	0	2	0	1	11
Mercer	12	11	13	9	8	8	10	7	6	10	8	7	109
Middlesex	16	10	15	13	12	19	10	14	7	11	11	9	147
Monmouth	10	8	19	13	8	9	15	10	12	13	8	10	135
Morris	4	5	2	8	5	7	9	4	2	6	10	7	69
Ocean	13	18	11	14	23	16	11	9	19	13	7	17	171
Passaic	15	14	11	14	8	11	15	8	8	7	11	12	134
Salem	0	5	2	1	2	2	2	2	2	3	2	5	28
Somerset	2	3	3	4	3	0	2	4	1	3	4	2	31
Sussex	2	5	4	1	4	0	1	3	1	1	1	0	23
Union	8	7	6	4	13	11	7	6	9	4	8	12	95
Warren	1	2	3	1	2	0	3	6	2	2	4	2	28

Source: ocsme.nj.gov

• According to the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office, drug deaths peaked in January 2022 to 284 for all counties and fell to 246 by December 2022. This is a 13.3% decrease.

New Jersey County Statistics 

Here are substance overdose and treatment admission rates for five counties in NJ. 

Camden

• In 2024, Camden County saw a 39% decrease in drug deaths—around 70 fewer deaths—compared to 2023. However, the county still had the highest number of overdose deaths compared to any other New Jersey county, except Essex. 
• Out of the total 85,266 treatment admissions for drug complications and therapy in NJ in 2022, 7,390 people were from Camden County—the third-highest number of admissions among all counties.  

Essex

• In the first six months of 2024, there were 182 drug deaths in Essex compared to 230 in the same period last year. This is a 21% drop. 
• In 2022, 8,194 Essex County residents were admitted to therapy in NJ. This was the highest number of admissions in the state during that year. 

Hunterdon

• According to the New Jersey Office of the Chief State Medical Examiner, Hunterdon saw a 50% increase in drug overdose deaths, from four in the first six months of 2023 to six during the same period in 2024. 
• In 2022, 731 Hunterdon residents were admitted to therapy—the lowest rate in NJ. 

Cape May

• In the first six months of 2024, Cape May reported 18 drug overdose-related deaths compared to 13 in 2023. This is a 39% increase. 
• According to the New Jersey Department of Human Services, Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services, 2,322 Cape May residents were admitted to therapy and rehab clinics in 2022.  

Somerset 

• From January 2024 to June 2024, Somerset Country saw an 87% increase in drug deaths (28 deaths) compared to 2023, which only saw 15 deaths in the same period, according to the New Jersey Office of the Chief State Medical Examiner. This was the largest increase compared to all counties. 
• In 2022, 1,632 Somerset residents were admitted to therapy compared to 1,566 in 2021. This is a 4.2% increase. 

FAQs

What Is the Overdose Rate in New Jersey?

There were 1,080 overdose deaths in all 21 counties of New Jersey in the first eight months of 2024, according to the New Jersey Office of the Chief State Medical Examiner. This is 26% lower than the 1,366 suspected deaths reported during the same period in 2023. 

Which Drugs Have the Highest Rate of Misuse in New Jersey?

According to the New Jersey Department of Human Services, Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services, alcohol and heroin were the most misused drugs in New Jersey in 2022. They were followed by other opiates (e.g., fentanyl, methadone, oxycodone) and cocaine. 

What Is the Rate of Valium Addiction in New Jersey?

While Valium has a high potential for misuse, it is rarely used as such in New Jersey when compared to opioids, stimulants, and cannabinoids. Learn more in our post on Valium addiction statistics.

Data Sources

1. https://www.nj.gov/oag/njcares/pdfs/2021-NJ-Confirmed-Overdose-Deaths-12-31-21.pdf

2. https://ocsme.nj.gov/Dashboard?_gl=1*11sqv8l*_ga*MTMwOTYzMzcyOS4xNjQ3ODg1ODEy*_ga_5PWJJG6642*MTY0Nzg5MDQ4MS4yLjEuMTY0Nzg5MDUxMC4w

3. https://www.njoag.gov/programs/nj-cares/nj-cares-suspected-overdose-deaths/

4. https://www.nj.gov/oag/njcares/pdfs/2022-NJ-Suspected-Overdose-Deaths-12-31-22.pdf

5. https://www.nj.gov/humanservices/dmhas/publications/statistical/Substance%20Abuse%20Overview/2022/Statewide.pdf

6. https://www.nj.gov/oag/njcares/pdfs/2021-NJ-Confirmed-Overdose-Deaths-12-31-21.pdf

7. https://www.njoag.gov/programs/nj-cares/nj-cares-data-by-county/

8. https://www.nj.gov/humanservices/dmhas/publications/statistical/Substance%20Abuse%20Overview/2021/statewide.pdf9. https://newjerseymonitor.com/2024/07/19/new-jersey-drug-deaths-plummet-in-first-half-of-2024/