Recovery Leaders See 2025 as a Critical Year in Fight Against Overdose Deaths


A CGI Overdose Aid Kit stocked with naloxone installed at the Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock
A CGI Overdose Aid Kit stocked with naloxone installed at the Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock
  • As overdose deaths begin to trend downward, advocates agree that more momentum is needed to turn the tide for good
  • CGI’s partnership with Mobilize Recovery and Direct Relief has deployed 846,000 doses of lifesaving naloxone
  • Overdose prevention and fighting stigma are critical to getting more people into recovery, experts say

Substance use disorder experts are starting 2025 by marking progress on the overdose and addiction crisis in the past year, while urging sustained and coordinated action to continue the downward trend of overdose deaths.

“After years of rising overdose deaths, we are finally seeing a shift in momentum – but in pockets across the country, deaths are still on the rise,” said Ryan Hampton, Co-Founder of Mobilize Recovery.

Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released at the end of 2024 show that in 2023, overdose deaths declined by 4 percent – following more than two decades of steadily rising deaths. This decline helped push overall life expectancy up in 2023.

“One of the keys to reducing overdose deaths, and helping people begin a path to recovery, is expanding access to naloxone – which can save lives in the event of an overdose,” said Chris Thrasher, CEO of the Substance Use Disorders and Recovery Division at the Clinton Foundation.

The Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), through its Overdose Response Network, and Mobilize Recovery’s partnerships have aimed to get naloxone in the hands of those on the front lines of the opioid epidemic – recovery residences, community organizations, and others who would be most likely to encounter someone having an overdose.

Through a partnership with Direct Relief and community networks across the country, since 2019 CGI and Mobilize Recovery have helped get over 846,000 doses of naloxone out to 23 states across the U.S., on the front lines of the epidemic.

“Getting these doses of naloxone out in the community, to recovery residences, public health departments, and harm reduction advocates, has helped reach thousands of people and give them a second chance to choose a path of recovery,” said Thrasher.

Hand in hand with naloxone access, say recovery advocates like Thrasher and Hampton, is fighting the stigma that comes with treating addiction.

“Naloxone can help save lives, but just as critical to that second chance is giving people clear pathways to recovery,” says Hampton. “We must be forceful and loud in fighting the stigma that exists against people suffering from substance use disorders.”

For several years, Mobilize Recovery has been traveling the country with bus tours, holding community events that highlight the recovery experience. Last year, Mobilize Recovery traveled 4,235 miles across 13 states, hosted 27 different events, and connected with thousands of individuals dedicated to building stronger, healthier communities.

The Clinton Foundation has also mobilized faith-based communities in support of recovery, bringing together cohorts of interfaith leaders from across traditions throughout the country to share strategies for fighting the overdose and addiction crisis in their own communities. In 11 cities across the country, faith leaders have received training on opioids and overdose prevention, became certified in Mental Health First Aid, learned how to speak about substance use disorders from the pulpit, and developed comprehensive guides on local prevention, treatment, and recovery resources for their communities.

Leaders in the recovery community agree that 2025 has the potential to be a critical turning point in the fight against overdose deaths.

“We are seeing a force multiplier effect,” Thrasher says, “The more we are out in communities, talking openly about this crisis and the ways to save lives, the more people are aware of how they can save a life, the more they support efforts in their own communities, and the more we reduce the stigma around addiction and recovery.”