People who have been prescribed an opioid to control pain are fairly likely to share those drugs with someone they know, especially if they are convinced that person is in pain.
That's what a survey of people who received an opioid prescription in 2015 revealed. Researchers gathered data from more than 1,000 painkiller users. They asked whether they ever shared their meds, how they stored them, and how they disposed of them when they were done with them.
The responses indicated that about one in five shared their drugs, usually with a friend or family member who was in pain.
Recommended For You
Much of the data was riddled with inconsistencies. For instance, the researchers divided respondents into two subcategories — current (in 2015) users and former users. Responses to the same questions varied greatly between the two groups.
When current users were asked why they share their medication, 66 percent say "to help the other person treat pain." Among former users, 79 percent agree with this response. Yet, about 17 percent of both groups respond affirmatively to the option "recipient could not afford opioid medication."
When asked if they kept leftover drugs for future use, 61 percent of the former users say they did, with 32 percent of current users saying the same. Nine percent of former users say they flushed the leftovers down the toilet, while 20 percent of current users were flushers. Current users claim to be much more diligent about securing their drugs in a locked or latched spot than are the former users.
Despite these and other inconsistencies, the major takeaway — folks are sharing their opioids — is cause for concern among the authors and medical professionals.
Speaking with Kaiser Health News, Wilson Compton, deputy director of the federal National Institute on Drug Abuse, says the study's results should cause physicians to reexamine their prescribing practices. "We've all been saying leftover medications are an issue," he say. "Now I have a number that is concerning."
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
Dan Cook
Dan Cook is a journalist and communications consultant based in Portland, OR. During his journalism career he has been a reporter and editor for a variety of media companies, including American Lawyer Media, BusinessWeek, Newhouse Newspapers, Knight-Ridder, Time Inc., and Reuters. He specializes in health care and insurance related coverage for BenefitsPRO.
