Hartford study ranks most popular workers' comp prescriptions

HARTFORD, Conn. The Hartford Financial Services Group released its 2006 annual study of the 25 most costly drugs in workers’ compensation cases. The number one drug from the last five years, OxyContin, the long acting narcotic painkiller, has been knocked off from its top spot.

The new number one is Lidoderm, a non-narcotic painkiller in patch form. OxyContin dropped to number five. Narcotics make up about 40 percent of workers’ compensation claims in regards to pharmaceuticals and that has worried some physicians.

“We remain concerned about the widespread use of narcotic pain killers to manage non-malignant pain in injured workers,” said Robert Bonner, medical director for The Hartford. “Narcotics account for 40 percent of the workers’ compensation claim dollars we spend on pharmaceuticals, but other pain management drugs and combinations would work equally well for some patients and avoid the potential risks associated with narcotics.”

The top five is listed from one through five as the following: Lidoderm, Hydrocodone, Oxycodone, Celebrex and OxyContin.