The Impact of the Southern Border Crisis on Recent Drug Overdose Deaths

• In Event: Drug Use and Drug Markets

Abstract

The transit of illicit drugs from Central and South America is both a political and health concern for the United States. Recent drug overdose deaths are increasing, highlighting the need to seek policy solutions to mitigate this epidemic. The aim of this study is to explore the relationship between drug overdose deaths and the border crisis in twenty-three United States counties along the Mexico and United States border. Open-sourced data from the United States Customs and Border Protection Agency, the Center for Disease and Control, and the United States Census Bureau were used. Using regression features, a pooled time-series analysis was deployed to examine monthly overdose deaths from January 2020 to June 2023. Research findings and policy implications will be discussed.

Authors

• Joshua Regan, Western New England University

• Tracy Tully, St. Thomas Aquinas College

• Melissa Inglis, University of Oklahoma