TABLE 3.
Patients Receiving At Least 15 DME per Day from the Rhode Island Prescription Drug Monitoring Program in 2018a
| Patient demographics | Patients with a benzodiazepine prescription, n (%) | Patients with a benzodiazepine dose ≥ 15 DME/day, n (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | 143,026 (100) | 37,455 (26.2) |
| Sexb | ||
| Male | 48,106 (33.6) | 14,556 (30.3) |
| Female | 94,884 (66.3) | 22,883 (24.1) |
| Age, years | ||
| 18-34 | 18,672 (13.1) | 4,143 (22.2) |
| 35-49 | 31,007 (21.7) | 9,027 (29.1) |
| 50-64 | 49,444 (34.6) | 14,401 (29.1) |
| 65-74 | 25,745 (18.0) | 6,651 (25.8) |
| 75+ | 18,158 (12.7) | 3,233 (17.8) |
| Payment | ||
| Commercial insurance | 65,835 (46.0) | 15,105 (22.9) |
| Medicaid | 17,433 (12.2) | 6,177 (35.4) |
| Medicare < 65 | 9,478 (6.6) | 4,378 (46.2) |
| Medicare 65+ | 30,635 (21.4) | 7,342 (24.0) |
| Cash | 15,203 (10.6) | 3,209 (21.1) |
| Other | 4,442 (3.2) | 1,244 (28.0) |
| County | ||
| Providence | 67,293 (47.0) | 18,939 (28.1) |
| Kent | 24,844 (17.4) | 7,005 (28.2) |
| Washington | 15,383 (10.8) | 3,805 (24.7) |
| Bristol | 5,775 (4.0) | 1,375 (23.8) |
| Newport | 8,825 (6.2) | 2,060 (23.3) |
| Out of state | 20,906 (14.6) | 4,271 (20.4) |
| Concurrent opioid use | ||
| Yes | 20,168 (14.1) | 7,537 (37.4) |
| No | 122,858 (85.9) | 29,918 (24.4) |
| Concurrent stimulant use | ||
| Stimulant | 9,547 (6.7) | 3,760 (39.4) |
| No stimulant | 133,478 (93.3) | 33,695 (25.2) |
a According to the patient’s most recent benzodiazepine dispensing.
b Sex was missing for 36 patients.
DME = diazepam milligram equivalents.