There was a suggestion at a Medical Council working group that Ireland could experience an opioid addiction crisis as has occurred in the US. Catherine Reilly reports on the group’s discussions and concerns, which includes the lack of private prescribing data

A Medical Council group developing strategies to address overprescribing has heard concerns that Ireland “could go down the same route as the US regarding opioid addiction”. The minutes of the virtual meeting in March 2021, obtained by the Medical Independent (MI) following a Freedom of Information request, did not specify the source of the comment or expand on the likelihood of such a crisis......