Researchers presented a study showing that hydrocodone's prescriptions have plummeted since officials rescheduled the drug from III to II, Anesthesia News reports.
Prescriptions fell by more than 1 billion following the first year after officials rescheduled the drug.
Researchers tracked the analgesics use in Texas six months pre and post rescheduling.
Here's what they found.
1. Five and 10 mg hydrocodone prescriptions combined with 325 mg of acetaminophen fell by 58 percent and 34 percent, respectively.
2. Prescriptions for schedule III drugs and combination products rose 597 percent and 1,056 percent, respectively.
"This suggests that prescribers are unable or unwilling to write for Schedule II opioids if there is an alternative Schedule III that might work,” Lynn Webster, MD, vice president of scientific affairs at Raleigh, N.C.-based PRA Health Sciences said to Anesthesia News.
Providers' reluctance to prescribe hydrocodone could deprive patients of an effective pain killer, experts believe.
In an online survey of 6,240 fibromyalgia patients, 82.5 percent received the drug in the past, and were no longer able to obtain them. Eighteen percent said they obtained hydrocodone from other sources, while 32.5 percent used a different substance for relief.