Report: Opioid Prescriptions Drop 11.7% in Wisconsin

A new report says opioid prescriptions dropped nearly 12 percent in Wisconsin in the last three months of 2016 compared to the same period in 2015.

The report from the state Controlled Substances Board found the number of prescriptions decreased 11.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2016 compared with the fourth quarter of 2015, from 1.26 million prescriptions in 2015 to 1.13 million in 2016.

The report also found that prescribers submitted 2.63 million records to the state’s Prescription Drug Monitoring Program, a database that tracks prescriptions. As of December, the database stored 48 million prescription records. A 2015 state law requires prescribers to consult the database before dispensing a monitored drug. The law is expected to go into effect this spring.