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1 / 39#39. Wahkiakum County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 3.6 per 100 people
--- 90.9% lower than state average
--- 91.7% lower than national average
Counties where the most opioids are dispensed in Washington
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 Washington, the opioid dispensing rate was 39.5 per 100 people, compared to 43.3 nationally.
Read the national story for additional historical context and see where other counties outside of Washington stand.
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2 / 39#38. Franklin County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 12.4 per 100 people
--- 68.6% lower than state average
--- 71.4% lower than national average
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3 / 39#37. Douglas County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 13.7 per 100 people
--- 65.3% lower than state average
--- 68.4% lower than national average
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4 / 39#36. Mason County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 15.9 per 100 people
--- 59.7% lower than state average
--- 63.3% lower than national average
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5 / 39#35. Adams County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 16.3 per 100 people
--- 58.7% lower than state average
--- 62.4% lower than national average
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6 / 39#34. Skamania County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 17.5 per 100 people
--- 55.7% lower than state average
--- 59.6% lower than national average
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7 / 39#33. Pacific County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 17.6 per 100 people
--- 55.4% lower than state average
--- 59.4% lower than national average
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8 / 39#32. Kittitas County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 18.4 per 100 people
--- 53.4% lower than state average
--- 57.5% lower than national average
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9 / 39#31. Island County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 19.0 per 100 people
--- 51.9% lower than state average
--- 56.1% lower than national average
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10 / 39#30. San Juan County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 26.3 per 100 people
--- 33.4% lower than state average
--- 39.3% lower than national average
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11 / 39#29. Snohomish County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 30.4 per 100 people
--- 23.0% lower than state average
--- 29.8% lower than national average
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12 / 39#28. Klickitat County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 30.8 per 100 people
--- 22.0% lower than state average
--- 28.9% lower than national average
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13 / 39#27. Grant County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 31.7 per 100 people
--- 19.7% lower than state average
--- 26.8% lower than national average
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14 / 39#26. Kitsap County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 36.1 per 100 people
--- 8.6% lower than state average
--- 16.6% lower than national average
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15 / 39#25. King County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 36.4 per 100 people
--- 7.8% lower than state average
--- 15.9% lower than national average
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16 / 39#24. Whitman County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 36.6 per 100 people
--- 7.3% lower than state average
--- 15.5% lower than national average
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17 / 39#23. Lewis County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 37.2 per 100 people
--- 5.8% lower than state average
--- 14.1% lower than national average
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18 / 39#22. Ferry County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 38.0 per 100 people
--- 3.8% lower than state average
--- 12.2% lower than national average
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19 / 39#21. Cowlitz County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 38.2 per 100 people
--- 3.3% lower than state average
--- 11.8% lower than national average
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20 / 39#20. Yakima County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 38.5 per 100 people
--- 2.5% lower than state average
--- 11.1% lower than national average
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21 / 39#19. Clark County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 39.8 per 100 people
--- 0.8% higher than state average
--- 8.1% lower than national average
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22 / 39#18. Whatcom County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 39.9 per 100 people
--- 1.0% higher than state average
--- 7.9% lower than national average
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23 / 39#17. Pierce County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 40.4 per 100 people
--- 2.3% higher than state average
--- 6.7% lower than national average
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24 / 39#16. Okanogan County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 42.6 per 100 people
--- 7.8% higher than state average
--- 1.6% lower than national average
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25 / 39#15. Clallam County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 43.1 per 100 people
--- 9.1% higher than state average
--- 0.5% lower than national average
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26 / 39#14. Thurston County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 44.0 per 100 people
--- 11.4% higher than state average
--- 1.6% higher than national average
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27 / 39#13. Jefferson County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 45.5 per 100 people
--- 15.2% higher than state average
--- 5.1% higher than national average
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28 / 39#12. Walla Walla County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 47.4 per 100 people
--- 20.0% higher than state average
--- 9.5% higher than national average
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29 / 39#11. Grays Harbor County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 49.1 per 100 people
--- 24.3% higher than state average
--- 13.4% higher than national average
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30 / 39#10. Stevens County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 50.9 per 100 people
--- 28.9% higher than state average
--- 17.6% higher than national average
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31 / 39#9. Skagit County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 55.0 per 100 people
--- 39.2% higher than state average
--- 27.0% higher than national average
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32 / 39#8. Chelan County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 58.1 per 100 people
--- 47.1% higher than state average
--- 34.2% higher than national average
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33 / 39#7. Spokane County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 58.8 per 100 people
--- 48.9% higher than state average
--- 35.8% higher than national average
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34 / 39#6. Asotin County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 59.9 per 100 people
--- 51.6% higher than state average
--- 38.3% higher than national average
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35 / 39#5. Lincoln County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 64.4 per 100 people
--- 63.0% higher than state average
--- 48.7% higher than national average
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36 / 39#4. Garfield County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 71.3 per 100 people
--- 80.5% higher than state average
--- 64.7% higher than national average
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37 / 39#3. Benton County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 72.9 per 100 people
--- 84.6% higher than state average
--- 68.4% higher than national average
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38 / 39#2. Pend Oreille County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 83.5 per 100 people
--- 111.4% higher than state average
--- 92.8% higher than national average
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39 / 39#1. Columbia County
- Opioid dispensing rate: 138.2 per 100 people
--- 249.9% higher than state average
--- 219.2% higher than national average
