Since 1999, overdose deaths involving prescription opioids have quadrupled, and more than 165,000 people in the United States died in 2014 as a result of overdoses connected to prescription opioids, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
In a new commentary, Tony Yang, associate professor of health administration and policy, along with Marc Larochelle of Boston University School of Medicine and Rebecca Haffajee of the University of Michigan School of Public Health, explore how physicians can manage the increasing liability risks of prescribing opioids that is a result of the increase in prescription opioid-involved deaths. The commentary is published in the American Journal of Medicine.
The authors point out that liability issues related to prescription opioids can deter physicians from prescribing them for their patients. Physicians have encountered civil and criminal liability issues, as well as professional sanctions. They also suggest, however, that following case law and opioid prescribing guidelines can help manage these risks and cite the CDC’s March 2016 list of recommended practices in managing the risks and benefits of prescribing opioids. Read the full commentary.