Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs and Opioid Prescriptions for Disability Conditions

There are variants of prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) and different groups of patients who are prescribed opioids. Patients with disabilities and those with chronic conditions might have different experiences in physician prescribing practices for opioids, when compared to a comparison group without these conditions.

To determine differences in opioid prescriptions related to PDMPs for people without cancer-related pain and with disability conditions compared to other adult opioid users without cancer, using a national database.

Opioid users were identified from the US Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. Disability groups were defined by diagnosis codes related to longstanding physical disability and inflammatory conditions. Our analyses used an event study framework and a difference-in-differences approach.

During a two-year panel period, PDMPs did not reduce opioid prescriptions for individuals with disabilities who use opioids. Our data show that individuals with disabilities who use opioids, on average, have a higher incidence of continuous opioid use and significantly greater amounts prescribed compared to other adults who have opioid prescriptions.

PDMPs do not appear to affect prescribers' initial or ongoing use of opioids for individuals with longstanding physical disabilities and those with inflammatory conditions. Thus, these adults have greater exposure to opioids, compared to other adults who were prescribed opioids.