California Workers’ Compensation Prescription Drug Distributions & Opioid Trends (Research Update, published 03/18) [PDF]

A CWCI study that uses data from 12.5 million prescriptions dispensed to California injured workers from 2007 to June 2017 to measure changes in the prescription and payment distributions among major therapeutic drug groups used in California workers’ compensation indemnity claims. The study then takes an in-depth look at the trends in the volume, cost, potency and types of opioids used.  The opioid data includes the changing percentage of indemnity claims involving opioids at different stages of claim development, the average number of opioid prescriptions per opioid user and per opioid prescription at different levels of claim development across accident years; total MMEs per opioid user and per opioid prescription at the different levels of claim development across accident years; the prescription and payment distributions for brand and generic opioids for 2008 to 2017 fill dates; and the changes in the prescription and payment distributions for common opioids (based on drug ingredient) over the past decade.