Report: USPS Lagging in Reducing Injured Worker Opioid Use

U.S. Postal Service workers who got hurt on the job were receiving 9% fewer opioid prescriptions in 2017 compared to 2013 — a much smaller drop than the 21% decrease seen among the national population overall, according to a report from the USPS Office of Inspector General. Opioid costs for injured USPS workers fell 18% from 2016 to 2018, the OIG found. The cost of opioids for other federal agency employees decreased 26%. In addition, the average number of opioid prescriptions per injured USPS worker increased from 2014 to 2017 — from 6.2 prescriptions per employee to 6.8. For pa...