Adults Treated For Chronic Pain Are 14% Of The Population & Account For Half Of Opioid Prescriptions

Adults treated for chronic pain comprised approximately 14% of all adults, and account for approximately 52.8% of all prescription fills. Among adults who were prescribed an opioid between 2013 and 2015, about 36.2% had a condition associated with chronic pain. These adults were substantially more likely (40.5%) to have had some opioid use than adults treated for other chronic conditions (16.6%) and adults treated for non-chronic conditions (15.9%). The rate of addiction among adults with chronic pain and using a prescribed opioid is not known.

These findings were reported in “Average Annual Opioid Use . . .