Walmart and Sam’s Club pharmacies said Monday they will soon restrict opioid prescriptions for acute pain to no more than seven days, and restrict dosage to only a 50 morphine milligram maximum per day.
The move aligns the mega chain with recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control, which put out the recommendation as part of an effort to curb overprescribing of powerful painkillers. The policy, which applies to first-time opioid prescriptions for acute pain, is set to take effect in the next 60 days, Walmart Inc. said in a statement Monday.
The company added that starting in 2020, it will require e-prescriptions for controlled substances, as e-prescriptions are less prone to errors and can be tracked easily.
The moves come as federal officials are trying to get a handle on rampant overprescribing of opioids, a key driver in the opioid epidemic that took more than 42,000 American lives in 2016. Sales of prescription opioids nearly quadrupled from 1999 to 2014 in the U.S., CDC data show.
Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., applauded Walmart’s move.
“These changes will not only help us decrease the number of prescription opioids that make it to the street, but will help us crack down on fraudulent prescriptions,” Manchin said in a statement.
