American Economic Journal Economic Policy · 2018 · 333 citations · 34 references
PharmacyPharmaceutical PolicyControlled Substance PolicySubstance Use DisordersSubstance Use PreventionDrug Overdose PreventionOpioid PolicyOpioid RegulationOpioid Safety PolicyOverdose PreventionPrescription RegulationDisruptionsFederal-state VariationOpioid-related MortalityPain RelieversPrescription Opioid MisuseState-level Policy VariationSupply-side EffectsSynthetic Opioids
Overdose deaths from prescription opioid pain relievers nearly quadrupled between 1999 and 2010, and supply‑side interventions that limit opioid access can unintentionally drive users toward substitute drugs such as heroin. We study the consequences of the 2010 introduction of an abuse‑deterrent formulation of OxyContin, one of the largest supply disruptions to abusable opioids. We exploit cross‑state variation in OxyContin exposure to assess how initial misuse rates predict subsequent increases in heroin deaths. Our results imply that the recent heroin epidemic is largely due to the reformulation of OxyContin.
Overdose deaths from prescription opioid pain relievers nearly quadrupled between 1999 and 2010. We study the consequences of one of the largest supply disruptions to date to abusable opioids - the introduction of an abuse-deterrent version of OxyContin in 2010. Supply-side interventions which limit access to opioids may have the unintended consequence of increasing use of substitute drugs, including heroin. Exploiting cross-state variation in OxyContin exposure, we find that states with the highest initial rates of OxyContin misuse experienced the largest increases in heroin deaths. Our results imply that the recent heroin epidemic is largely due to the reformulation of OxyContin.
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João Santos Silva, Silvana Tenreyro · The Review of Economics and Statistics · 2006 · 6.1K citations · Full text
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The American Journal of Medicine · 1997 · 4.7K citations