Concerns About Opioid Use in Medicare Part D in the Appalachian Region

Overdose deaths are at epidemic levels and the opioid crisis is now considered a public health emergency. In 2016, there were more than 42,000 opioid-related overdose deaths in the United States-115 deaths per day. Nearly 7,000 of these deaths occurred in five States in the Appalachian region-Alabama, Kentucky, Ohio, Tennessee, and West Virginia. All five of these States had high opioid prescribing rates and four reported opioid-related overdose death rates that far exceeded that of the Nation. Identifying beneficiaries who are at risk of overdose or abuse is key to addressing this crisis. This data brief provides data on opioid use in Medicare Part D in these five States in 2017, including the number of beneficiaries who were at serious risk of opioid misuse or overdose.