Fact Fact Fact According to the CDC, healthcare providers wrote 259M prescriptions for opioid pain relievers in 2012, which is enough for every adult in America to fill one prescription. Reactions Source: Paulozzi LJ, Mack KA, Hockenberry JM. Vital signs: variation among states in prescribing of opioid pain relievers and benzodiazepines—United States, 2012. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2014;63:563–8. See all +less − Painkillers, Prescriptions
Fact Fact Fact The average days’ supply of opioids prescribed by doctors in the U.S. increased 33% from 2006 to 2015. Reactions Source: Guy GP Jr., Zhang K, Bohm MK, et al. Vital Signs: Changes in Opioid Prescribing in the United States, 2006–2015. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2017;66:697–704. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6626a4 See all +less − Painkillers, Prescriptions
Fact Fact Fact Over half of young adults who misused prescription opioids got them from a friend or family member. 1 Reactions Source: Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality. (2017). 2016 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: Detailed Tables. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Rockville, MD. See all +less − Addiction, Painkillers
Fact Fact Fact In 2017, 47,600 people died of opioid overdoses in America. 1 Reactions Source: Hedegaard H, Miniño AM, Warner M. Drug overdose deaths in the United States, 1999–2017. NCHS Data Brief, no 329. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2018. See all +less − Addiction, Overdose, Painkillers
Fact Fact Fact Every day in 2017, an estimated 1,300 young adults misused an opioid prescription for the first time. 186 Reactions Source: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2018). Key substance use and mental health indicators in the United States: Results from the 2017 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (HHS Publication No. SMA 18-5068, NSDUH Series H-53). Rockville, MD: Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. See all +less − Addiction, Painkillers
Fact Fact Fact In 2013, the United States, which continued to be the principal consumer country of oxycodone, accounted for 78 percent of the world total. 2 Reactions Source: United Nations: International Narcotics Control Board. Report of the International Narcotics Control Board for 2014. Accessed June 2018. See all +less − Epidemic, Painkillers
Fact Fact Fact The prescribing rates for controlled substances among adolescents and young adults nearly doubled from 1994 to 2007. Reactions Source: Fortuna RJ, Robbins BW, Caiola E, Joynt M, Halterman JS. Prescribing of controlled medications to adolescents and young adults in the United States. Pediatrics. 2010;126(6):1108-1116. See all +less − Epidemic, Painkillers, Prescriptions
Fact Fact Fact In 2011, more than 420,000 emergency department visits were related to the misuse or abuse of narcotic pain relievers. 2 Reactions Source: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Drug Abuse Warning Network, 2011: National Estimates of Drug-Related Emergency Department Visits. Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration; 2013. See all +less − Addiction, Painkillers
Fact Fact Fact Taking opioids after wisdom teeth removal increases the odds of long term use. Reactions Source: Harbaugh CM, Nalliah RP, Hu HM, Englesbe MJ, Waljee JF, Brummett CM. Persistent Opioid Use After Wisdom Tooth Extraction. JAMA. 2018;320(5):504–506. doi:10.1001/jama.2018.9023 See all +less − Addiction, Painkillers, Prescriptions