The recent release of a study conducted in 2022 shows opioid drugs are dispensed at a lower rate in Russell County than many neighboring counties and lower than state and national averages.
According to a study released by the CDC, opioids were dispensed at a rate of 37.2 prescriptions per 100 persons in 2022.
Casey County was the only county with a lower rate at 27.3 prescriptions per 100 persons.
From there, the numbers get noticeably higher. In Adair County, that rate was 48.3 per 100 persons and 48.8 per 100 in Pulaski County.
In Cumberland County, it was 50.4 per 100 persons.
Clinton County was notably higher at 80.9 opioid prescriptions per 100 persons.
Wayne County was the highest of surrounding counties at 92.8 prescriptions per 100 persons.
The average rate in Kentucky was 61.6 prescriptions per 100 persons and nationally, that rate was 39.5.
Data is mixed about the effects of lower rates of opioids dispensed. Some studies show reducing prescriptions at the local level can lower a community’s rate of opioid abuse or misuse. Others have suggested that decreasing prescriptions may have fueled a new phase of the opioid epidemic: the rise of synthetics like fentanyl.
Russell County has seen a decrease in opioid prescriptions each year since 2019, according to this report.
