Workers injured in construction, manufacturing at highest risk for prescription painkiller abuse [Report]

Vicodin. Percocet. Percodan. OxyContin. Fentanyl. Tylenol with Codeine. These are just a few of the prescription painkillers known as opioids on the market that injured workers may be taking with the advice of their doctors. But how many of those workers can stop using the painkillers as they return to work?

According to recent media reports, opioid abuse among injured workers is growing, partially as a result of over-prescription by doctors who don’t want to see their patients in pain. Although the issue is widespread across all industries, two new reports from CNA, the eighth largest commercial insurance writer in the U.S., find that the construction and manufacturing industries are particularly at risk for such abuse. The reports—Construction: Prescription Opioid Abuse and Manufacturing: Prescription Opioid Abuse—use CNA claim data to provide risk management strategies to address this issue.