Working Paper: NBER ID: w23645
Authors: Molly Schnell; Janet Currie
Abstract: Using national data on opioid prescriptions written by physicians from 2006 to 2014, we uncover a striking relationship between opioid prescribing and medical school rank. Even within the same specialty and practice location, physicians who completed their initial training at top medical schools write significantly fewer opioid prescriptions annually than physicians from lower ranked schools. Additional evidence suggests that some of this gradient represents a causal effect of education rather than patient selection across physicians or physician selection across medical schools. Altering physician education may therefore be a useful policy tool in fighting the current epidemic.
Keywords: opioid prescribing; medical education; public health
JEL Codes: I18
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Medical school rank (I23) | opioid prescribing (Z28) |
| Lower-ranked medical schools (I23) | opioid prescribing (Z28) |
| Education at medical schools (I23) | prescribing behavior (I11) |
| Specialty training in pain management (M53) | opioid prescribing (Z28) |
| Physician selection and patient sorting (I11) | observed relationship (C29) |