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. 2016 Jun 1;35(6):1045-51.
doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2015.1673.

Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs Are Associated With Sustained Reductions In Opioid Prescribing By Physicians

Yuhua Bao  1 , Yijun Pan  2 , Aryn Taylor  3 , Sharmini Radakrishnan  4 , Feijun Luo  5 , Harold Alan Pincus  6 , Bruce R Schackman  7
Affiliations

Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs Are Associated With Sustained Reductions In Opioid Prescribing By Physicians

Yuhua Bao et al. Health Aff (Millwood). .

Abstract

State prescription drug monitoring programs are promising tools to rein in the epidemic of prescription opioid overdose. We used data from a national survey to assess the effects of these programs on the prescribing of opioid analgesics and other pain medications in ambulatory care settings at the point of care in twenty-four states from 2001 to 2010. We found that the implementation of a prescription drug monitoring program was associated with more than a 30 percent reduction in the rate of prescribing of Schedule II opioids. This reduction was seen immediately following the launch of the program and was maintained in the second and third years afterward. Effects on overall opioid prescribing and prescribing of non-opioid analgesics were limited. Increased use of these programs and the adoption of new policies and practices governing their use may have contributed to sustained effectiveness. Future studies are needed to evaluate the policies' comparative effectiveness.

Keywords: Behavioral Health; PDMP; Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs.

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Figures

EXHIBIT 1
EXHIBIT 1. Effects of the implementation of a prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP) on the prescribing of opioid analgesics and other pain medications
Source/Notes: SOURCE Authors’ analysis of data for 2001–10 from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey. NOTES The data shown are predicted probabilities of receiving or continuing a prescription for an opioid analgesic or other pain medication at a pain-related ambulatory care visit with and without a PDMP. The whiskers represent 95% confidence intervals. Schedule II opioids are explained in the text. ME is the marginal effect of a PDMP. ***p < 0.01
EXHIBIT 2
EXHIBIT 2. Effects of a prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP) on the prescribing of opioid analgesics, by time since program implementation
Source/Notes: SOURCE Authors’ analysis of data for 2001–10 from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey. NOTES The data shown are marginal effects of a PDMP on the probability of receiving a prescription for an opioid analgesic or a Schedule II opioid during a pain-related ambulatory care visit by time intervals since PDMP implementation. The whiskers represent 95% confidence intervals.
EXHIBIT 3
EXHIBIT 3. Effects of a prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP) on the prescribing of any pain medication and of nonopioid analgesics, by time since implementation
Source/Notes: SOURCE Authors’ analysis of data for 2001–10 from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey. NOTES The data shown are marginal effects of PDMP on the probability of receiving a prescription for pain medication or a nonopioid analgesic during a pain-related ambulatory care visit by time intervals since implementation. The whiskers represent 95% confidence intervals.
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