Drug Monitoring Could Lower Opioid Prescription Rates, Study Says

Drug monitoring programs could be useful in the fight against the growing epidemic of opioid abuse, according to a new study lead by Weill Cornell Medicine’s Dr. Yuhua Bao.

States that tracked opioid prescriptions saw the rate of some prescriptions drop by more than 30 percent, the researchers reported in this month’s issue of the journal Health Affairs.

Using records from more than 26,000 doctor visits in 24 states that started programs between 2001 and 2010, Dr. Bao and her colleagues found the rates of prescriptions fell significantly for Schedule II opioids, which are considered to have the highest risk of misuse and abuse. Drugs in this category include OxyContin and Percocet.

"As awareness and use continue to rise and as states adopt additional strategies to enhance their programs — for example, by mandating prescriber registration with the program — we hope the potential of these programs will be realized to a greater extent," Dr. Bao told the online health publication STAT.

The study was also covered by several other news outlets, including NBC, Marketplace and Politico.