Minnesota DHS: New data shows doctors are prescribing fewer opioids
Oxycodone pain pills prescribed for a patient with chronic pain. (John Moore / Getty Images)
(FOX 9) - Minnesota doctors serving state health care programs wrote a third fewer new opioid prescriptions last year, according to a report from the Department of Human Services.
The state cites protocol changes in recent years prompted by the nationwide opioid epidemic.
According to the DHS, the new report shows doctors are prescribing fewer opioids and giving lower doses when prescribed.
The DHS says public health program doctors prescribed 56 percent fewer prescriptions over recommended doses for acute and post-acute pain periods. Over the one-year period in review, which ended this past September, doctors also wrote 33 percent less index opioid prescriptions -- or prescriptions for patients who hadn't had an opioid prescription in the previous 90 days.
The most significant drop, according to the DHS, was a 57 percent fall for patients prescribed chronic opioid therapy and benzodiazepines, which is a potentially dangerous mix for patients.
The state says that doctors, who serve patients in the Medical Assistance and MinnesotaCare programs, will soon receive individualized reports on their prescriptions practices versus other doctors' trends.