Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35139298›Full record

ArticleThe American journal of managed care2022

Association of opioid utilization management with prescribing and overdose.

Martin S Andersen, Vincent Lorenz, Anurag Pant, Jeremy W Bray, G Caleb Alexander

Open access · greenAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in The American journal of managed care, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
0.4field-weighted citation impact, top 39% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 3 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Changes in opioid prescribing and high-risk co-prescribing after implementation of the 2016 CDC opioid guideline among older adults with and without cancer.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2026
    Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Martin S AndersenDepartment of Economics, The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 516 Stirling St, Greensboro, NC 27412. Email: msander4@uncg.edu.
Vincent Lorenz
Anurag Pant
Jeremy W Bray
G Caleb Alexander
University of North Carolina at Greensboro · US

Funding

Alcohol consumption and related comorbid conditions: health state utilities for economic evaluation in the context of the COVID-19 pandemicR15AA027655 · NIAAA · UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA GREENSBORO · PI BRAY, JEREMY W · 2019 to 2021
$670k
Utilization Management in the Medicare Part D ProgramR21AG058132 · NIA · UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA GREENSBORO · PI ANDERSEN, MARTIN S · 2018 to 2019
$218k
NIAAA NIH HHS R15 AA027655NIA NIH HHS R21 AG058132
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesDeaths from prescription opioids have reached epidemic levels in the United States, yet little is known about how insurers' coverage policies may affect rates of fatal and nonfatal overdose among individuals filling an opioid prescription. STUDY

designRetrospective cohort study using 2010-2016 Medicare claims data for beneficiaries with 1 or more filled prescriptions for a Schedule II opioid.

methodsOutcomes were opioid volume dispensed in morphine milligram equivalents (MME), number of days supplied, and number of pills dispensed on each prescription and emergency department or inpatient stay associated with an opioid overdose during a prescription or within 7 days of the end of the prescription.

resultsA total of 7.03 million prescriptions for Schedule II opioids were dispensed over 1.87 million Part D beneficiary-years. The 7.03 million opioid prescriptions were associated with 8.5 opioid overdoses per 10,000 prescriptions. Prior authorization was associated with larger opioid volumes per prescription (103.6 MME; 95% CI, 36.2-171.0). Step therapy was associated with a greater number of days supplied (0.62 days; 95% CI, 0.10-1.13) and more pills dispensed (6.12 pills; 95% CI, 2.17-10.1). Quantity limits were associated with smaller opioid volumes (24.3 MME; 95% CI, 12.3-36.3) and fewer pills dispensed (2.35 pills; 95% CI, 1.77-2.93). In adjusted models, beneficiaries filling an opioid requiring prior authorization experienced 3.3 fewer overdoses per 10,000 prescriptions (95% CI, 0.41-6.2).

conclusionsOpioid utilization management among these beneficiaries was associated with mixed effects on opioid prescribing, and prior authorization was associated with a decreased likelihood of subsequent overdose. Further work exploring the impact of utilization management and insurer policies is needed.

Indexed as

Analgesics, OpioidDrug OverdoseAgedHumansMedicarePractice Patterns, Physicians'Retrospective StudiesUnited StatesAnalgesics, Opioid

Identifiers

PMID35139298
PMCPMC8852696
OpenAlexW4211084763

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.