Report Shows Opioid Prescriptions Fell 19 Million Last Year

Doctors continue to write fewer prescriptions for opioids, with a new report showing the number has fallen by more than 55 million since 2013.

The American Medical Association (AMA) report contains the following statistics in regards to the opioid epidemic that's swept the nation in recent years:

• The number of opioid prescriptions fell by more than 19 million from 2016 to 2017, a 9 percent drop.
• Since 2013, the number of opioid prescriptions has dropped by more than 55 million, which amounts to a 22.2 percent decrease.
• More than 1.5 million physicians were enrolled in prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) at the end of 2017, a significant increase from 2014 (471,896).
• More than 300.4 million PDMP queries were made in 2017, a 121 percent increase from 2016.
• Naloxone, an opioid overdose reversal drug, was prescribed roughly 8,000 times per week last year — up from 3,500 times per week in 2016.

The White House is working with the Ad Council to roll out an anti-opioid campaign that would make Americans more aware of the dangers of the drug, which is typically prescribed for pain management.

Six states, meanwhile, recently filed a lawsuit against Purdue Pharma, which makes OxyContin, accusing the company of using deceptive marketing to bolster sales of the drug.

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