Summary NCIPC_DOP and NCHS Collaboration

The National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC) and National Center for
Health Statistics (NCHS) Collaboration Updates
The Terms of Clearance in the State Unintentional Drug Overdose Reporting System (SUDORS)
OMB (Control No: 0920-1128) Package states the following:
“NCIPC’s NVDRS and SUDORS programs will continue to collaborate with NCHS’ NCVS to
share knowledge and optimize investments associated with collecting data from state CMEs. The
goal of this collaboration is to a) reduce duplicative reporting of the same data by States to
different components of CDC; b) to improve the quality and timeliness of CME data to CDC
(e.g., by increasing electronic interoperability of CME case management systems and public
health reporting systems); and c) to maximize the value of the data being reported.”
The Overdose Mortality Team (OMT), where the State Unintentional Drug Overdose Reporting
System (SUDORS) resides in the Epidemiology and Surveillance Branch (ESB) of the Division
of Overdose Prevention (DOP), National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention, is continuing collaborations with the National Center for Health
Statistics (NCHS), including the Collaborating Office of Medical Examiners and Coroners
(COMEC), to share knowledge and optimize investments.
In response to this requirement, below is a summary of activities that occurred between
NCIPC and NCHS for the period August 2022–December 2025 (including ongoing
activities):
Ongoing: NCHS, SUDORS, and NVDRS staff participate in SUDORS/NVDRS and MDI Data
Modernization Collaborative Discussions with the Georgia Tech Research Institute. The
meetings include discussion of NCHS Review of “modernization” efforts related to medico-legal
death investigation (MDI) data, including toxicology and review of FHIR based standards for
death certificate data. Georgia Tech Research Institute present overviews of their work.
Ongoing: Dr. Julie O’Donnell (OMT Lead) and several OMT staff attend NCIPC and NCHS
quarterly calls focused on drug overdose mortality, to share information about work being done
in this area.
Ongoing: OMT prepares and updates an internal talking points document to accompany the
monthly updates to the NCHS provisional drug overdose mortality data page, and provides the
document to NCHS for review/awareness.
Ongoing: OMT provides updates on trainings and other opportunities for the medical
examiner/coroner community to the COMEC monthly newsletters, stemming from work with
Public Health Institutes (PHI) to strengthen medical examiner/coroner capacity to investigate and
certify overdose deaths.
Ongoing: Dr. Julie O’Donnell (OMT Lead) participates in the NCHS Medicolegal Death
Investigation Data Working Group (MDI-Data-WG).

Ongoing: DOP and NCHS collaborate to align categorization and naming practices for drugs and
metabolites; prior to August 2025 this was done through both programs having IPA arrangements
with Dr. Bruce Goldberger, a forensic toxicologist.
December 2025: Dr. Julie O’Donnell (OMT Lead), Dr. Maria Zlotorzynska (OMT Scientist) and
Ms. Kim Miller (OMT Scientist) met with Ms. Carri Cottengim (NCHS/COMEC) and staff from
the Office of the National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) to discuss potentially developing
national standards for postmortem toxicology testing for violent deaths, suicides, and overdose
deaths.
December 2025: Dr. Julie O’Donnell (OMT Lead) presented the updated SUDORS data
dashboard (with newly-added final data for deaths that occurred during 2024) to the December
COMEC webinar.
July 2025: Dr. Julie O’Donnell (OMT Lead) provided a report-out to NCHS of all medical
examiner/coroner-related projects and activities ongoing within DOP.
July 2024: NVDRS, SUDORS, and NCHS colleagues from COMEC attended the International
Association of Coroners and Medical Examiners (IACME) Medicolegal Death Symposium. Dr.
Lauren Tanz (OMT Senior Scientist) and Ms. Amanda Dinwiddie (OMT Scientist) presented on
SUDORS, and all the programs gave presentations discussing their group’s activities. The
COMEC table at the meeting contained information about NVDRS and SUDORS.
July 2023: NVDRS, SUDORS, and NCHS colleagues from COMEC attended the International
Association of Coroners and Medical Examiners (IACME) Medicolegal Death Symposium. Dr.
Lauren Tanz (OMT Senior Scientist) and Ms. Amanda Dinwiddie (OMT Scientist) presented on
SUDORS, and all the programs gave presentations discussing their group’s activities. The
COMEC table at the meeting contained information about NVDRS and SUDORS.
May 2023: Dr. Christine Mattson (OMT Senior Scientist) presented during the May COMEC
webinar on using fatal drug overdose data for prevention and response, providing an overview
of, and data from, SUDORS.