Opioid Operators: How Surgeons Ply Patients With Painkillers

By Elizabeth Lucas June 20, 2019

Even as awareness of the opioid crisis grew, prescribing habits of surgeons changed very little from 2011 to 2016, found a data analysis by Kaiser Health News and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Our team looked at surgeons whose Medicare patients filled a prescription for opioids within a week of having one of seven common surgical procedures. These averages may not reflect current prescribing practices. (See the methodology for more information.)

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Opioid Operators: How Surgeons Ply Patients With Painkillers

By Elizabeth Lucas June 20, 2019

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<h1>Opioid Operators: How Surgeons Ply Patients With Painkillers</h1>
	<span class="byline">Elizabeth Lucas, KFF Health News</span>
<p>Even as awareness of the opioid crisis grew, prescribing habits of surgeons changed very little from 2011 to 2016, found a data analysis by Kaiser Health News and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Our team looked at surgeons whose Medicare patients filled a prescription for opioids within a week of having one of seven common surgical procedures. These averages may not reflect current prescribing practices. (See <a href="https://kffhealthnews.org/opioid-operators-methodology/">the methodology</a> for more information.)</p>
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