Clinical question: How have national and county-level opioid prescribing practices changed from the years 2006 to 2015?
Background: The opioid epidemic is currently at the forefront of public health crises, with more than 15,000 deaths caused by prescription opioid overdoses in 2015 alone and an estimated 2 million people with an opioid use disorder associated with prescription opioids. The opioid epidemic also has a significant financial burden with the cost of opioid overdose, abuse, and dependence totaling $78.5 billion/year in the United States. As the utilization of opioids to treat noncancer pain quadrupled during 1999-2010, so did the prevalence of opioid misuse disorder and overdose deaths from prescription opioids. This study reviewed prescribing practices at the national and county level during 2006-2015 in hopes of understanding how this affected the opioid crisis.
Study design: Review of opioid prescription data.
Setting: The data were summarized from a sample of pharmacies throughout the United States.
Synopsis: Data were obtained via the QuintilesIMS Data Warehouse, which estimated the number of opioid prescriptions, based upon a sample of 59,000 U.S. pharmacies (88% of total prescriptions). The amount of prescriptions peaked in 2010 then decreased yearly through 2015, yet remained about three times as high as prescription rates from 1999. Opioid prescribing practices had significant variation throughout the country, with higher prescription rates associated with smaller cities, larger white population, higher rates of Medicaid and unemployment, and higher prevalence of arthritis and diabetes. Variation in prescribing practices at the county level represents lack of consensus and evidence-based guidelines.
The authors suggest that providers carefully weigh the risks and benefits of opioids and review the Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. At the state and local levels, mandated pain clinic regulations and Physician Drug Monitoring Programs also are needed for continued improvement in opioid-related deaths. Weaknesses of study included lack of clinical outcomes and use of QuintilesIMS to estimate prescriptions that has not been validated.
Bottom line: Although rates of opioid prescriptions have improved since 2010, substantial changes and regulations for prescribing practices are needed at the state and local levels.
Citation: Guy GP Jr. et al. Vital Signs: Changes in opioid prescribing in the United States, 2006-2015. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2017;66:697704.
Dr. Farber is a medical instructor, Duke University Health System.