973 - Naloxone Prescription Fill Rate in Chronic Opioid-Managed Patients

Several states, including Ohio, mandate the prescription of Naloxone (Narcan) for patients managed on chronic opioids to reduce unintentional overdose.  Although prescriptions by the provider are monitored, it is unclear how many patients fill the medication.

In other acute and chronic medications, prescription fill rates are variable, with patients showing inconsistent compliance. This project aims to collect patient-reported data via a survey as well as use the prescription monitoring program (PMP) to collect patient fill rate in this population for the medication.

The purpose of the study is to evaluate the prescription fill rate using the prescription PMP to compare actual rate vs patient reported rate, as well as the patient reason(s) for not filling the prescription

Design:

Patients currently managed on opioids at a local institution were included. During the scheduled office visits in the clinic, anonymous surveys were completed. Additionally, data via chart review of the PMP for all the patients was collected.

Results:

208 patients were included in the project, 108 female and 100 male. Of the 208, 204 reported knowledge of the reason for the naloxone prescription, 208 knew what naloxone was and 138 reported filling the prescription. Of those that did not report filling of the prescription, 8 stated it was due to cost, 48 stated they did not need the naloxone and 8 just did not want to fill the prescription. The PMP data showed only 29 (13.9%) of the 208 had filled the prescription.

Conclusions:

Despite the state mandate to prescribe naloxone, compliance in the actual filling of the prescription medication is low, diminishing the intended rationale for the mandate. Further studies should explore ways to increase compliance with filling naloxone prescriptions and determine whether state mandates are effective in reducing opioid misuse.