In 2012, physicians wrote a record 255 million opioid prescriptions, a prescription rate of 81.3 per 100 people. (Credit: Lightspring/Shutterstock)
Each day across the United States, more than 130 people die after an opioid overdose. In 2018, an estimated 1.7 million people suffered from prescription opioid abuse disorders. For many of them, their addiction began with a prescribed opioid like hydrocodone or oxycodone following an injury at work.
Opioids can be a helpful treatment option in managing pain that occurs after certain surgeries and types of cancer. But, studies indicate that many healthcare providers overprescribe opioids and many patients misuse the drugs, resulting in what innumerable news reports, academic studies and televised documentaries aptly described as the "opioid epidemic." The financial toll of this epidemic — the costs of healthcare, lost worker productivity, addiction treatment, and law enforcement — is estimated at $78.5 billion a year.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free PropertyCasualty360 Digital Reader
Your access to unlimited PropertyCasualty360 content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking insurance news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Weekly Insurance Speak podcast featuring exclusive interviews with industry leaders
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical converage of the employee benefits and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, BenefitsPRO and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
