This case study uses Virginia APCD data to examine low-value opioid prescribing for acute low back pain among over 850,000 insured residents from 2019 to 2021, finding that nearly three-quarters of opioid prescriptions were inconsistent with clinical guidelines, that the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated an already-declining prescribing trend, and that rural patients consistently received 74% more low-value prescriptions than non-rural patients — a disparity the pandemic did not close.
Case Study Link: An Examination of Trends in Low-Value Opioid Prescribing for Acute Low Back Pain in Rural vs. Non-Rural Virginia
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