Oregon Opioid Epidemic: OHA Proposed New Prescription Guidelines

PORTLAND, OR – Oregon is in the midst of an opioid crisis. While the number of prescriptions for opioids have dropped by 30 percent over the past six years, the state believes that they are still being over-prescribed, particularly to people who have never used them.

In an effort to combat that problem, the Oregon Health Authority convened a working group to study the problem and develop new guidelines for prescribing opioids.

The group's report – issued late last month – concluded that "many patients who receive a prescription for opioids do not use all the medications, resulting in leftover pulls that increase the risk of misuse and abuse.

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"These factors support the need for robust safety measures around prescribing opioids for acute painful conditions."

As a result, the OHA says that "in general, opioids should NOT be considered as first line therapy for mild to moderate pain."

The authority says that times there are not strong other options so, in those cases, doctors should "prescribe the lowest effective dose of short-acting opioids for less than three days; in cases of more severe acute pain, limit the initial prescription to less than seven days."

Doctors are also urged to look into whether a patient has a history of substance abuse issues, work with patients about how to store the medications and dispose unused doses.

You can read the whole report here.

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