Fatal fentanyl overdoses may have reached a peak in Washington state, according to preliminary data. But that’s not all good news. At the end of 2023, the quarterly death toll statewide was down 9% after rising nearly every quarter since 2019. While synthetic opioid fatalities are still rising in some parts of the state, the rate in King County has fallen since July 2023, when nearly four people died each day, on average, from overdoses involving fentanyl.