California Priority Topic Investments
Click on any of the tabs below to learn more about each topic.
California Overdose Investment Snapshot
Combatting the current overdose crisis is a priority for the agency. This page provides an overview of the FY22 CDC Injury Center (NCIPC) overdose investments for the state of California.
There were 106,699 drug overdose deaths in the United States in 2021 (32.4 deaths per 100,000 standard population), a 16% increase from 2020. Approximately 75% of drug overdose deaths in 2021 involved at least one opioid; 66% of deaths involved synthetic opioids (e.g., illicitly manufactured fentanyls). Drug overdose deaths involving synthetic opioids increased 25%, deaths involving psychostimulants (e.g., methamphetamine) increased 37%, and deaths involving cocaine increased 26% from 2020 to 2021. Although deaths increased overall and in all drug categories except heroin, the increases from 2020 to 2021 were generally lower than those from 2019 to 2020, suggesting a slowing of the increase in overdose deaths.
In 2021 in California there were:
10,901
overdose deaths
26.6
overdose deaths per 100,000 people (age-adjusted)
Source: NVSS – Drug Overdose Deaths
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Overdose Data to Action (OD2A)
Public Health and Public Safety
Research
*average award amount |
Examples of How California Is Working to Prevent Overdose
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Enhanced data informs prevention
Riverside County established a surveillance team, equipping the county to collect, analyze, and disseminate fatal and nonfatal overdose data rapidly. These data enhancements inform the content of overdose prevention trainings for school-aged youth, helping to demonstrate the impact of overdoses in Riverside County. |
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Local county coalition
The Orange County (OC) coalition, SafeRx OC, collaborates with population-focused community partners, such as shelters and local jails, to increase access to medication assisted treatment services for individuals at increased risk of overdose, including those experiencing homelessness, high-risk pregnant patients, and people re-entering society from institutional settings. |
CDC Overdose Prevention Strategies
CDC’s Injury Center plays a critical role in addressing the drug overdose epidemic by driving progress in the five strategic priorities that guide CDC’s response framework for preventing overdoses.
Strategic Priorities Overview
Monitor, Analyze, and Communicate Trends
Build State, Tribal, Local, and Territorial Capacity
Support Providers, Health Systems, Payors, and Employers
Partner with Public Safety and Community Organizations
Raise Public Awareness and Reduce Stigma
Additional Resources
1 Spencer MR, Miniño AM, Warner M. Drug overdose deaths in the United States, 2001–2021. NCHS Data Brief, no 457. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2022. DOI: https://dx.doi. org/10.15620/cdc:122556
California Suicide Prevention Investment Snapshot
Preventing suicide is a priority for the agency. This page provides an overview of the FY22 CDC Injury Center (NCIPC) suicide prevention investments for the state of California.
Suicide is a leading cause of death in the United States. It was responsible for more than 48,000 deaths in 2021, which is about one death every 11 minutes. The number of people who think about or attempt suicide is even higher. In 2021, 12.3 million American adults seriously thought about suicide, 3.5 million planned a suicide attempt, and 1.7 million attempted suicide.
In 2021 in California there were:
4,148
suicide deaths
10.1
suicide deaths per 100,000 people (age-adjusted)
Source: Suicide Rates by State (cdc.gov)
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Comprehensive Suicide Prevention
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California is preventing suicide with CDC Injury Center (NCIPC) funding by:
- Creating protective environments
- Teaching coping and problem-solving skills
- Identifying and supporting people at risk
- Strengthening access and delivery of suicide care
Some groups have higher rates of suicide than others. To address disparities, California is focusing on:
- 13 counties with high rates of suicide and emergency department visits for self-harm
- Rural communities
This snapshot reflects suicide prevention priorities and activities under Year 1 funding of the Comprehensive Suicide Prevention (CSP) Program. This information is subject to change. For additional information, please see CSP: Program Profiles.
Examples of How California Is Working to Prevent Suicide
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Pharmacist training
California will provide suicide gatekeeper training to pharmacists. This training helps participants identify and respond to people who may be at risk of suicide. This training also includes best practices in safe storage of medications. |
CDC Suicide Prevention Strategies
Suicide is preventable and there is no single cause, so prevention requires addressing the multiple factors linked to suicide at the individual, relationship, community, and societal levels. As such, CDC is leading a comprehensive approach to suicide prevention. Such an approach aims to prevent people from becoming suicidal in the first place and support people at increased risk. CDC uses near real-time data to track and monitor suicide trends, research possible risks and what works to prevent them, and help communities put proven suicide prevention strategies into place.
CDC’s Suicide Prevention Resource for Action outlines seven strategies that are based on the best available evidence to help communities and states focus on prevention activities with the greatest potential to prevent suicide.
Strengthen economic supports
Create protective environments
Improve access and delivery of suicide care
Promote healthy connections
Teach coping and problem-solving skills
Identify and support people at risk
Lessen harms and prevent future risk
Additional Resources
California ACEs Investment Snapshot
Preventing, identifying, and responding to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) is a priority for the agency. This page provides an overview of the FY22 CDC Injury Center (NCIPC) ACEs investments for the state of California.
ACEs are preventable, potentially traumatic events that occur in childhood (0-17 years) such as neglect, experiencing or witnessing violence, or having a family member attempt or die by suicide. Among U.S. adults surveyed between 2011-2020, 63.9% of adults had at least one ACE and 17.3% had 4 or more types of ACEs. Preventing ACEs could reduce a large number of health conditions, including up to 21 million cases of depression, 1.9 million cases of heart disease, and 2.5 million cases of overweight/obesity.
Swedo EA, Aslam MV, Dahlberg LL, Niolon PH, Simon TR, Guinn AS, Mercy JA. Prevalence of Adverse Childhood Experiences Among U.S. Adults – Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey, 2011-2020. MMWR.
In 2020 in California*:
68.4%
of U.S. adults reported experiencing at least one ACE
19.0%
of U.S. adults reported experiencing four or more ACEs
*ACE statistics are reported by U.S. adults and include exposure to eight types of ACEs: physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, witnessing intimate partner violence, household substance abuse, household mental illness, parental separation or divorce, and incarcerated household member. (Source: Swedo EA, Aslam MV, Dahlberg LL, Niolon PH, Simon TR, Guinn AS, Mercy JA. Prevalence of Adverse Childhood Experiences Among U.S. Adults – Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey, 2011-2020. MMWR.).
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FY22 Awards Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS)
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Beyond the ACEs appropriation, CDC supports several initiatives, research, and partnerships to build state and tribal surveillance infrastructure and enhance ACEs prevention and mitigation.
In California, some of those other initiatives include:
Examples of How California Is Working to Prevent ACEs
| Surveillance activities
The San Diego Unified School District is adding questions about experiencing ACEs to the California YRBS to provide representative state-wide estimates of ACEs for California public high school students. |
| Strengthening economic supports
The California Essentials for Childhood team is working to increase access to and use of California’s paid family leave benefits and earned income tax credit (known as CalEITC). The team is particularly interested in ensuring applications for both programs are accessible for all California families. Key partners in this approach include multiple state government agencies and violence prevention organizations, including the California Partnership to End Domestic Violence. |
| Changing social norms
With key partners in the California Department of Social Services’ Office of Child Abuse Prevention, the California Essentials for Childhood team is engaging local- and state-level stakeholders to promote these messages. In the first three years of the project, the California team worked to improve and expand data sources on social norms related to child health and parenting. The California team has developed a toolkit for local health departments to help them “tell their communities’ story” from this new data. |
CDC ACEs Prevention and Mitigation Strategies
ACEs and their associated harms are preventable. Creating and sustaining safe, stable, nurturing relationships and environments for all children and families can prevent ACEs and help all children reach their full health and life potential. CDC has produced a suite of technical packages to help states and communities take advantage of the best available evidence to prevent violence, including the many types of violence and social, economic, and other exposures in the home and community that adversely affect children.
From this suite of technical packages, CDC developed Adverse Childhood Experiences Prevention Resource for Action, which outlines six strategies that can prevent ACEs from happening in the first place as well as mitigate the harms of ACEs.
Strengthening Economic Supports to Families
Promoting Social Norms that Protect Against Violence and Adversity
Ensuring a Strong Start for Children
Teaching Skills
Connecting Youth to Caring Adults and Activities
Intervening to Lessen Immediate and Long-Term Harms