The Intended and Unintended Effects of Opioid Policies on Prescription Opioids and Crime

Deiana Claudio () and Ludovica Giua
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Deiana Claudio: Department of Economics and Business, University of Cagliari (Italy), via Sant’Ignazio 17, 09100Cagliari, Italy

The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, 2021, vol. 21, issue 2, 751-792

Abstract: In response to the opioid crisis, US states have implemented policies to reduce the dispensing of opioids and curb drug mortality. Exploiting a long panel of county-level data, we analyse the combination of demand- and supply-side state opioid policies and evaluate their effect on opioids per capita dispensed and their unintended fallouts on drug-related crime. We demonstrate that only laws targeting the supply for opioids reduce the volume of prescribed drugs, while demand-side policies are less effective. We also emphasize that within supply-side state regulations, Pain Management Clinics Laws are the most successful in reducing the dispensation of prescription opioids. Remarkably, the drop in opioids distributed due to supply-side regulations is accompanied by negative externalities in the local market for illicit drugs.

Keywords: crime; drugs; opioid laws; prescription opioids (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I18 K32 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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DOI: 10.1515/bejeap-2020-0253

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