vagabond54 // Shutterstock
1 / 50#50. Day County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 4.0 per 100 people
--- 90.0% lower than state average
--- 90.8% lower than national average
Counties where the most opioids are dispensed in South Dakota
When Purdue Pharma first began sales of OxyContin in the late 1990s, it was advertised as relief for cancer patients and people with chronic pain. Aggressive marketing fueled the drug's popularity, along with that of other opioid pain management drugs on the market. But as the company touted OxyContin to physicians, it downplayed the drug's addictiveness, according to confidential Justice Department reports obtained by news organizations, leading to widespread use that has fueled an opioid epidemic across the U.S.
More than 645,000 people have died from opioid-related overdoses between 1999 and 2021, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Provisional data shows just under 80,000 people died in 2022 alone.
Opioid prescriptions have decreased dramatically over the past decade as physicians and public health officials learned about the dangers of OxyContin and other opioids prescribed for pain management. In 2020, the most recent year with data available, the national opioid dispense rate reached 43.3 per 100 people, the lowest rate ever recorded.
A 2022 study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse found that counties with higher dispensing rates had more cases of opioid misuse and dependence. The study suggested that reducing prescriptions at the local level can lower a community's rate of opioid abuse or misuse.
Other studies, however, have suggested that decreasing prescriptions may have fueled a new phase of the opioid epidemic: the rise of synthetics like fentanyl. In 2020, synthetics accounted for 82% of all opioid deaths.
It's also important to note that, as awareness has grown about the dangers of dispensing opioid prescription painkillers, more health care professionals are also prescribing medications like Suboxone–which contains buprenorphine and naloxone—for the treatment of addiction and opioid use disorders. While Suboxone is also an opioid medication, it works differently than typical opioid painkillers, blocking the effects of more powerful and addictive opioids to deter intentional misuse.
Using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Ophelia broke down counties in every state with the highest opioid dispense rates. In the case of a tie, the county with the higher population and higher raw number is ranked higher. Data was available for 98% of counties in the United States. Overall in South Dakota, the opioid dispensing rate was 39.9 per 100 people, compared to 43.3 nationally.
Read the national story for additional historical context and see where other counties outside of South Dakota stand.
SevenMaps // Shutterstock
2 / 50#49. Mcpherson County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 4.4 per 100 people
--- 89.0% lower than state average
--- 89.8% lower than national average
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Potter County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 4.5 per 100 people
--- 88.7% lower than state average
--- 89.6% lower than national average
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. Corson County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 4.6 per 100 people
--- 88.5% lower than state average
--- 89.4% lower than national average
Canva
5 / 50#46. Campbell County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 5.6 per 100 people
--- 86.0% lower than state average
--- 87.1% lower than national average
Canva
6 / 50#45. Butte County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 6.0 per 100 people
--- 85.0% lower than state average
--- 86.1% lower than national average
Canva
7 / 50#44. Meade County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 6.9 per 100 people
--- 82.7% lower than state average
--- 84.1% lower than national average
thierry dehove // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Todd County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 7.4 per 100 people
--- 81.5% lower than state average
--- 82.9% lower than national average
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Spink County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 7.9 per 100 people
--- 80.2% lower than state average
--- 81.8% lower than national average
Canva
10 / 50#41. Jackson County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 8.8 per 100 people
--- 77.9% lower than state average
--- 79.7% lower than national average
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
11 / 50#40. Turner County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 11.7 per 100 people
--- 70.7% lower than state average
--- 73.0% lower than national average
Bennekom // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. Bon Homme County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 12.6 per 100 people
--- 68.4% lower than state average
--- 70.9% lower than national average
SevenMaps // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Marshall County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 13.8 per 100 people
--- 65.4% lower than state average
--- 68.1% lower than national average
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Moody County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 14.6 per 100 people
--- 63.4% lower than state average
--- 66.3% lower than national average
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
15 / 50#36. Clark County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 15.2 per 100 people
--- 61.9% lower than state average
--- 64.9% lower than national average
Patrick Ziegler // Shutterstock
16 / 50#35. Mccook County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 18.3 per 100 people
--- 54.1% lower than state average
--- 57.7% lower than national average
Canva
17 / 50#34. Lake County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 19.3 per 100 people
--- 51.6% lower than state average
--- 55.4% lower than national average
Canva
18 / 50#33. Brookings County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 19.8 per 100 people
--- 50.4% lower than state average
--- 54.3% lower than national average
melissamn // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Aurora County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 21.1 per 100 people
--- 47.1% lower than state average
--- 51.3% lower than national average
SevenMaps // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Faulk County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 22.1 per 100 people
--- 44.6% lower than state average
--- 49.0% lower than national average
Canva
21 / 50#30. Charles Mix County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 22.1 per 100 people
--- 44.6% lower than state average
--- 49.0% lower than national average
SevenMaps // Shutterstock
22 / 50#29. Douglas County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 23.1 per 100 people
--- 42.1% lower than state average
--- 46.7% lower than national average
Canva
23 / 50#28. Kingsbury County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 23.9 per 100 people
--- 40.1% lower than state average
--- 44.8% lower than national average
Canva
24 / 50#27. Clay County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 25.6 per 100 people
--- 35.8% lower than state average
--- 40.9% lower than national average
Canva
25 / 50#26. Grant County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 27.8 per 100 people
--- 30.3% lower than state average
--- 35.8% lower than national average
Canva
26 / 50#25. Custer County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 29.9 per 100 people
--- 25.1% lower than state average
--- 30.9% lower than national average
Canva
27 / 50#24. Lincoln County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 30.5 per 100 people
--- 23.6% lower than state average
--- 29.6% lower than national average
Canva
28 / 50#23. Jones County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 31.2 per 100 people
--- 21.8% lower than state average
--- 27.9% lower than national average
Canva
29 / 50#22. Roberts County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 31.7 per 100 people
--- 20.6% lower than state average
--- 26.8% lower than national average
Canva
30 / 50#21. Lawrence County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 31.7 per 100 people
--- 20.6% lower than state average
--- 26.8% lower than national average
Canva
31 / 50#20. Walworth County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 31.8 per 100 people
--- 20.3% lower than state average
--- 26.6% lower than national average
SevenMaps // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Edmunds County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 33.2 per 100 people
--- 16.8% lower than state average
--- 23.3% lower than national average
Canva
33 / 50#18. Beadle County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 36.7 per 100 people
--- 8.0% lower than state average
--- 15.2% lower than national average
Canva
34 / 50#17. Codington County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 37.2 per 100 people
--- 6.8% lower than state average
--- 14.1% lower than national average
SevenMaps // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Hyde County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 38.2 per 100 people
--- 4.3% lower than state average
--- 11.8% lower than national average
Canva
36 / 50#15. Fall River County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 38.7 per 100 people
--- 3.0% lower than state average
--- 10.6% lower than national average
Canva
37 / 50#14. Hughes County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 39.6 per 100 people
--- 0.8% lower than state average
--- 8.5% lower than national average
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
38 / 50#13. Tripp County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 42.2 per 100 people
--- 5.8% higher than state average
--- 2.5% lower than national average
J K Laws // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Davison County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 45.8 per 100 people
--- 14.8% higher than state average
--- 5.8% higher than national average
Canva
40 / 50#11. Pennington County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 49.7 per 100 people
--- 24.6% higher than state average
--- 14.8% higher than national average
Canva
41 / 50#10. Yankton County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 50.0 per 100 people
--- 25.3% higher than state average
--- 15.5% higher than national average
Canva
42 / 50#9. Brule County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 52.1 per 100 people
--- 30.6% higher than state average
--- 20.3% higher than national average
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Perkins County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 53.1 per 100 people
--- 33.1% higher than state average
--- 22.6% higher than national average
Steven Frame // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Minnehaha County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 53.9 per 100 people
--- 35.1% higher than state average
--- 24.5% higher than national average
Danita Delimont // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Hutchinson County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 54.8 per 100 people
--- 37.3% higher than state average
--- 26.6% higher than national average
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
46 / 50#5. Brown County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 55.8 per 100 people
--- 39.8% higher than state average
--- 28.9% higher than national average
SevenMaps // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Gregory County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 60.0 per 100 people
--- 50.4% higher than state average
--- 38.6% higher than national average
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Jerauld County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 108.1 per 100 people
--- 170.9% higher than state average
--- 149.7% higher than national average
Canva
49 / 50#2. Haakon County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 119.1 per 100 people
--- 198.5% higher than state average
--- 175.1% higher than national average
Sabrina Janelle Gordon // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Union County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 233.8 per 100 people
--- 486.0% higher than state average
--- 440.0% higher than national average
