Workers’ compensation insurance premiums in Florida are being driven up by injured workers’ opioid dependency. When workers get injured on the job the treatment for the injuries are paid for by workers’ comp. Many times these injuries require surgery and subsequent pain management afterward. When patients are prescribed an opioid to deal with the post surgical pain many of them find it hard to stop using the medication due to physical dependence. They have extremely addictive properties which make stopping after prolonged use very difficult and painful. Florida had some of the highest incidences of opioid dependency in the country until the state began cracking down on pain management clinics, commonly referred to as “pill mills,” in 2011. Many of these clinics were dispensing high doses of the medication without real medical need to do so. In 2010 is was estimated that between 8.5-12.6 kilograms of the prescription drugs were distributed for every 100,000 people in Florida. Presciption drugs such as Oxycontin, Vicodin, and Percocet were being abused at an alarming rate. This is particularly problematic for Florida’s workers’ comp system because of the increase in costs due to long term coverage of the drugs and associated doctor’s visits. Injured worker’s become dependant on the drugs and many fake the severity of their pain to continue to recieve regular doses of the schedule II narcotics. Opioid prescriptions make up 15-20% of the cost of long term care for workers’ compensation claims. This causes Florida’s workers’ compensation insurance rates to increase which increase costs for everyone. Prescription drug abuse is an epidemic in Florida and the rest of the country. Thankfully many states and the Federal Government are taking action to prevent it.
