Short-Term and Long-Term Opioid Prescribing by Specialty, 2010 to 2024

How do opioid prescribing trends in the US differ by prescriber specialty and for short-term and long-term prescribing?In this cross-sectional study, the volume and dose of opioid fills decreased substantially for 51 million commercially insured and Medicare Advantage enrollees between 2010 and 2024; decreases were greatest in long-term prescribing (81.3% decrease among commercially insured). Prescribing was increasingly concentrated among pain specialists (from 17.1% to 26.7% among the Medicare Advantage with disability cohort).The decrease in opioid prescribing (in particular long-term prescribing), combined with increasing concentration of prescribing among pain specialists, raises concerns about access to care for patients requiring opioid treatment.

Corresponding Author: Michele J. Buonora, MD, MS, MHS, Division of General Internal Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center and Albert Einstein College of Medicine, 111 E 210th St, Bronx, NY 10467 (buonora@montefiore.org).

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