Opioid Prescriptions Among Women of Reproductive Age Enrolled in Medicaid - New York, 2008-2013

What is already known about this topic? Opioid exposure during pregnancy can cause neonatal abstinence syndrome and has been associated with the occurrence of birth defects. What is added by this report? During 2008–2013, approximately 20% of women of reproductive age (15–44 years) continuously enrolled in New York’s Medicaid program filled a prescription for an opioid pain medication from an outpatient setting. The proportion of women who received opioid prescriptions was lowest during the prenatal period for women who had a live birth (9.5%), intermediate for women with no indication of contraceptive use or infertility (17%), and highest for women with an indication of contraceptive use or infertility (27%). What are the implications for public health practice? Pregnancy status, sexual activity, and contraceptive use should be ascertained by providers before prescribing opioid pain medications; for women with chronic pain, recommendations from CDC’s opioid prescribing guideline should be followed. For women with other pain conditions who are pregnant or who are not using contraceptives, adherence to acute care setting, dental practice, and other clinical practice guidelines facilitated through clinical quality improvement strategies might result in increased prescribing and use of safer pain medications or nonpharmacologic treatments. © 2016, Department of Health and Human Services. All rights reserved.