Prior authorization can help prevent overprescription and misuse by ensuring that non-opioid pain management options are considered before an opioid is prescribed. (Getty Images)
Opioid addiction often starts where many don’t expect it—in the recovery room after surgery. Too often, patients are prescribed more pain medication than they actually need, leading to dependency before they even realize it’s happening.
The opioid crisis isn’t just about illegal drugs—it’s about how easily prescription opioids can become the first step toward addiction.
As someone who has worked on substance abuse legislation for years, I’ve seen firsthand how a single prescription can change the course of someone’s life. But I’ve also seen how smart, preventive policies can help stop addiction before it begins. One of those policies is prior authorization—a safeguard that helps ensure opioid prescriptions are appropriate, necessary, and not excessive.
Some in the legislature are now pushing Senate Bill 480, which would weaken prior authorization in Indiana. If that happens, providers will face fewer checks before prescribing opioids, potentially leading to more unnecessary prescriptions, more misuse, and more addiction.
This is not just a health policy debate—it’s a matter of life and death.
Prior authorization helps prevent overprescription and misuse by ensuring that non-opioid pain management options are considered before an opioid is prescribed. It serves as a critical checkpoint, especially for patients undergoing routine or minor procedures where opioids may not be the best or safest option. Without it, opioid prescriptions could skyrocket, putting more
Hoosiers at risk of addiction. This is especially concerning in a state that already ranks among the highest in the nation for opioid-related deaths.
Over the past decade, Indiana has made progress in the fight against opioid addiction. We’ve increased prescription monitoring, expanded treatment access, and educated physicians on responsible prescribing. Prior authorization is another key tool in this fight, ensuring opioids aren’t the first option when safer alternatives exist. Weakening this safeguard will only send us backward. The legislature must take a responsible approach to ensure that any changes to healthcare policy do not unintentionally fuel the very crisis we’ve been working to solve.
Indiana lawmakers should reconsider SB 480 and ensure we are strengthening, not undermining, efforts to combat opioid addiction. The stakes are simply too high to get this wrong.
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