Data

AHRQ’s data sources that help expand the knowledge base on opioids.

AHRQ’s largest data sources, including the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) and the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS), collect a wealth of information that help expand the knowledge base on opioids. AHRQ presents this data through statistical briefs, infographics, and other online resources.

Statistical Briefs

HCUP Statistical Brief #226: Patient Residence Characteristics of Opioid-Related Inpatient Stays and Emergency Department Visits Nationally and by State, 2014 (PDF)

Data highlight the rates of opioid-related hospitalizations and emergency department visits according to patient location and community-level income from 2005 to 2014.

HCUP Statistical Brief #224, Patient Characteristics of Opioid-Related Inpatient Stays and Emergency Department Visits Nationally and by State, 2014 (PDF)

Data show that hospitalizations involving opioid pain relievers and heroin increased 75 percent for women between 2005 and 2014, a jump that significantly outpaced the 55-percent increase among men.

Women Have Higher Rates of Opioid-Related Hospitalizations In Most States

HCUP Statistical Brief #219, Opioid-Related Hospital Stays and Emergency Department Visits by State, 2009–2014 (PDF)

The report summarizes State-specific data, provides trends over time, and identifies the States with the highest and lowest rates of opioid-related hospital stays in 2014.

Opioids’ Burden on Hospital Care: A State-by-State Comparison

HCUP Statistical Brief #177, Hospital Inpatient Utilization Related to Opioid Overuse Among Adults, 1993–2012 (PDF)

Report finds that the rate of hospitalizations for overuse of pain medications has increased more than 150 percent since 1993. Hospitalization rates were climbing among every adult age group and in every region of the country, making the problem more uniformly widespread than has previously been observed.

Opioid Overuse on the Rise; More Widespread Across U.S.

Related infographic: Opioid Overuse on the Rise: More Widespread Across the United States (PDF, 564 KB)

MEPS Statistical Brief 505: Total Expenses, Total Utilization, and Sources of Payment for Outpatient Prescription Opioids in the U.S. Adult Civilian Noninstitutionalized Population, 2015 (PDF)

This report presents estimates of total expenses, total purchases and sources of payment for all opioids, as well as the top four opioid products ranked by total expenses in 2015, which are: Hydrocodone, Oxycodone, Tramadol, and Codeine.

MEPS Statistical Brief 478: Trends in Prescribed Outpatient Opioid Use and Expenses in the U.S. Civilian Noninstitutionalized Population, 2002-2012 (PDF)

Report examines trends in the number of persons purchasing at least one outpatient prescription opioid, and total expenses and total number of prescriptions, as well as average annual cost per person and total and average out-of-pocket costs for the U.S. civilian noninstitutionalized population from 2002 through 2012.

Online Resources

HCUP Fast Stats - Opioid Inpatient Stays Map

This HCUP Fast Stats interactive heat map visualizes opioid-related inpatient stays by State. Each State's opioid-related rate is reported per 100,000 population. States are color-coded in quintiles using 2015 as the base year.

HCUP Fast Stats - Opioid Emergency Department Visits Map

This HCUP Fast Stats interactive heat map visualizes opioid-related emergency department visits by State. Each State's opioid-related rate is reported per 100,000 population. States are color-coded in quintiles using 2015 as the base year

Trends in Opioid-Related Hospitalizations by State

Interactive Map for State-Specific Trends in Opioid-Related Hospital Care

This interactive map, based on HCUP data, gives State statistics about opioid-related hospital care, including hospitalization trends between 2009-14 and hospitalizations in 2014 broken down by patient age, sex, geographic area and income. Also available for 32 States are county-level opioid-related hospitalization discharges and rates per 100,000 population.

Page last reviewed September 2018
Page originally created September 2018

Internet Citation: Data. Content last reviewed September 2018. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/opioids/data.html