Child deaths from fentanyl on the rise in Kansas, report shows
TOPEKA – (October 14, 2024) – The State Child Death Review Board has released its annual report, revealing a troubling rise in drug-related deaths among Kansas children aged 0-17. In 2022, the number of such deaths increased to 16, up from 11 in 2021, highlighting a significant and alarming trend associated with fentanyl.
>The report, which analyzes deaths of children from birth to age 17, reflects a broader national crisis. From a national standpoint, the CDC reported there were 107,941 drug overdose deaths for all age groups in 2022.
In recent years, both nationally and in Kansas, the data shows an increase in the use of synthetic opioids like fentanyl. While fentanyl is a prescription drug, it is also manufactured illegally. Compared to morphine, fentanyl is 50 to 100 times more powerful, making even a small amount deadly. Fentanyl is frequently incorporated into illicitly manufactured pressed pills and mixed with other substances without the knowledge of the end user.
According to the board report, there were ten drug-related deaths in children ages 4 or younger between 2019 and 2022, six were the result of the child finding unsecured illicit drugs. In 2018, the state recorded zero drug-related deaths in that age category. For older youth, counterfeit pills laced with fentanyl are a rising concern as 69% of the drug-related deaths during this time period were in youth ages 15-17, many of whom were experimenting with drugs without knowledge there was fentanyl.
“Over the past three decades, the State Child Death Review Board has examined more than 13,000 deaths of Kansas children,” stated Sara Hortenstine, the board’s executive director. “The stories behind these tragic losses have been transformed into data that should be used to educate our youth, urge caregivers to secure drugs, and advocate for the removal of fentanyl from our streets, while holding those who distribute it accountable.”
Overall, the report revealed that Kansas recorded 389 child fatalities in 2022, an increase from 349 in 2021, resulting in an overall child death rate of 56.3 deaths per 100,000 population. In addition to providing public policy recommendations, the report includes prevention points that families can use to decrease the likelihood of a child’s death.
The board is a multi-disciplinary, multi-agency volunteer board organized by law within the attorney general’s office to examine trends and patterns that identify risk factors in the deaths of children from birth through 17 years of age.
The report is available on the attorney general’s website at https://ag.ks.gov/scdrb.