Are U.S. doctors prescribing too many narcotics?

“The amount of opioids prescribed in the U.S. is still too high, with too many opioid prescriptions for too many days at too high a dosage,” said the CDC's acting director, Anne Schuchat, M.D.. More on ... That's a concern because there's little evidence that narcotic pain drugs help with long-term pain. read more

And some doctors exceeded that limit by a lot: Nearly one-quarter gave out month-long dosages, despite the fact that research has shown that a month's use of prescription narcotic painkillers can cause brain changes, the National Safety Council survey found. read more

Some do, and as a direct result, many others prescribe too few. Pain management in the USA exists between a rock and a hard place (and other hard places): federal law makes prescribing appropriate medication difficult and risky for prescribers. As a result, many just don't prescribe opiates at all. read more

U.S. doctors still writing too many opioid prescriptions August 1, 2017 (HealthDay)—More than one out of three average Americans used a prescription opioid in 2015, despite growing concerns these medicines are promoting widespread addiction and overdose deaths, according to a study published online Aug. 1 in the Annals of Internal Medicine. read more