Does Prescription Opioid Shopping Increase Overdose Rates in Medicaid Beneficiaries?

ABSTRACT: STUDY OBJECTIVE:The link between prescription opioid shopping and overdose events is poorly understood. We test the hypothesis that a history of prescription opioid shopping is associated with increased risk of overdose events. METHODS:This is a secondary analysis of a linked claims and controlled substance dispense database. We studied adult Medicaid beneficiaries in 2014 with prescription opioid use in the 6 months before an ambulatory care or emergency department visit with a pain-related diagnosis. The primary outcome was a nonfatal overdose event within 6 months of the cohort entry date. The exposure of interest (opioid shopping) was defined as having opioid prescriptions by different prescribers with greater than or equal to 1-day overlap and filled at 3 or more pharmacies in the 6 m

SUBMITTER: Sun BC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5960419 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature