Millennium Health Signals Report™

COVID-19 Special Edition: Significant Changes in Drug Use During the Pandemic

In this analysis, we evaluated the definitive urine drug testing (UDT) positivity rates of non-prescribed fentanyl, cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine in the periods before and after COVID-19 was declared a national emergency.

The findings from this report highlight:

  • A national increase in UDT positivity rates during COVID-19 for non-prescribed fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine, and heroin
  • Most U.S. census divisions had a significant increase in adjusted UDT positivity rate for at least one drug, except the South Atlantic and West North Central
  • 19 states had statistically significant increases or decreases in adjusted positivity rates for at least one of the drugs evaluated