Counties where the most opioids are dispensed in Louisiana
This story originally appeared on Ophelia and was produced and distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.
Counties where the most opioids are dispensed in Louisiana
When Purdue Pharma first began sales of OxyContin in the late 1990s, it was advertised as relief for cancer patients and people with chronic pain. Aggressive marketing fueled the drug's popularity, along with that of other opioid pain management drugs on the market. But as the company touted OxyContin to physicians, it downplayed the drug's addictiveness, according to confidential Justice Department reports obtained by news organizations, leading to widespread use that has fueled an opioid epidemic across the U.S.
More than 645,000 people have died from opioid-related overdoses between 1999 and 2021, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Provisional data shows just under 80,000 people died in 2022 alone.
Opioid prescriptions have decreased dramatically over the past decade as physicians and public health officials learned about the dangers of OxyContin and other opioids prescribed for pain management. In 2020, the most recent year with data available, the national opioid dispense rate reached 43.3 per 100 people, the lowest rate ever recorded.
A 2022 study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse found that parishes with higher dispensing rates had more cases of opioid misuse and dependence. The study suggested that reducing prescriptions at the local level can lower a community's rate of opioid abuse or misuse.
Other studies, however, have suggested that decreasing prescriptions may have fueled a new phase of the opioid epidemic: the rise of synthetics like fentanyl. In 2020, synthetics accounted for 82% of all opioid deaths.
It's also important to note that, as awareness has grown about the dangers of dispensing opioid prescription painkillers, more health care professionals are also prescribing medications like Suboxone–which contains buprenorphine and naloxone—for the treatment of addiction and opioid use disorders. While Suboxone is also an opioid medication, it works differently than typical opioid painkillers, blocking the effects of more powerful and addictive opioids to deter intentional misuse.
Using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Ophelia broke down parishes in every state with the highest opioid dispense rates. In the case of a tie, the parish with the higher population and higher raw number is ranked higher. Data was available for 98% of parishes in the United States. Overall in Louisiana, the opioid dispensing rate was 68.3 per 100 people, compared to 43.3 nationally.
Read the national story for additional historical context and see where other parishes outside of Louisiana stand.
#50. Jackson Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 20.2 per 100 people
--- 70.4% lower than state average
--- 53.3% lower than national average
#49. Assumption Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 20.7 per 100 people
--- 69.7% lower than state average
--- 52.2% lower than national average
#48. Saint Bernard Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 21.6 per 100 people
--- 68.4% lower than state average
--- 50.1% lower than national average
#47. Vermilion Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 23.0 per 100 people
--- 66.3% lower than state average
--- 46.9% lower than national average
#46. East Feliciana Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 23.7 per 100 people
--- 65.3% lower than state average
--- 45.3% lower than national average
#45. Tensas Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 24.4 per 100 people
--- 64.3% lower than state average
--- 43.6% lower than national average
#44. Acadia Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 28.4 per 100 people
--- 58.4% lower than state average
--- 34.4% lower than national average
#43. Pointe Coupee Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 28.6 per 100 people
--- 58.1% lower than state average
--- 33.9% lower than national average
#42. Saint Helena Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 29.0 per 100 people
--- 57.5% lower than state average
--- 33.0% lower than national average
#41. Beauregard Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 29.5 per 100 people
--- 56.8% lower than state average
--- 31.9% lower than national average
#40. Sabine Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 30.1 per 100 people
--- 55.9% lower than state average
--- 30.5% lower than national average
#39. Natchitoches Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 30.3 per 100 people
--- 55.6% lower than state average
--- 30.0% lower than national average
#38. Saint Mary Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 30.8 per 100 people
--- 54.9% lower than state average
--- 28.9% lower than national average
#37. Concordia Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 32.8 per 100 people
--- 52.0% lower than state average
--- 24.2% lower than national average
#36. Ascension Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 33.5 per 100 people
--- 51.0% lower than state average
--- 22.6% lower than national average
#35. Allen Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 34.7 per 100 people
--- 49.2% lower than state average
--- 19.9% lower than national average
#34. Avoyelles Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 34.7 per 100 people
--- 49.2% lower than state average
--- 19.9% lower than national average
#33. Union Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 35.9 per 100 people
--- 47.4% lower than state average
--- 17.1% lower than national average
#32. Winn Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 37.1 per 100 people
--- 45.7% lower than state average
--- 14.3% lower than national average
#31. Caldwell Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 37.2 per 100 people
--- 45.5% lower than state average
--- 14.1% lower than national average
#30. Tangipahoa Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 38.8 per 100 people
--- 43.2% lower than state average
--- 10.4% lower than national average
#29. Webster Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 40.6 per 100 people
--- 40.6% lower than state average
--- 6.2% lower than national average
#28. Washington Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 42.3 per 100 people
--- 38.1% lower than state average
--- 2.3% lower than national average
#27. Morehouse Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 42.9 per 100 people
--- 37.2% lower than state average
--- 0.9% lower than national average
#26. Vernon Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 44.5 per 100 people
--- 34.8% lower than state average
--- 2.8% higher than national average
#25. Red River Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 44.8 per 100 people
--- 34.4% lower than state average
--- 3.5% higher than national average
#24. Lafourche Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 46.0 per 100 people
--- 32.7% lower than state average
--- 6.2% higher than national average
#23. Jefferson Davis Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 47.4 per 100 people
--- 30.6% lower than state average
--- 9.5% higher than national average
#22. Lincoln Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 52.7 per 100 people
--- 22.8% lower than state average
--- 21.7% higher than national average
#21. Saint James Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 53.4 per 100 people
--- 21.8% lower than state average
--- 23.3% higher than national average
#20. Bossier Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 57.4 per 100 people
--- 16.0% lower than state average
--- 32.6% higher than national average
#19. Calcasieu Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 59.4 per 100 people
--- 13.0% lower than state average
--- 37.2% higher than national average
#18. Franklin Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 62.9 per 100 people
--- 7.9% lower than state average
--- 45.3% higher than national average
#17. St John The Baptist Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 65.3 per 100 people
--- 4.4% lower than state average
--- 50.8% higher than national average
#16. La Salle Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 65.7 per 100 people
--- 3.8% lower than state average
--- 51.7% higher than national average
#15. Terrebonne Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 66.1 per 100 people
--- 3.2% lower than state average
--- 52.7% higher than national average
#14. Claiborne Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 69.1 per 100 people
--- 1.2% higher than state average
--- 59.6% higher than national average
#13. East Carroll Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 70.9 per 100 people
--- 3.8% higher than state average
--- 63.7% higher than national average
#12. Saint Landry Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 72.9 per 100 people
--- 6.7% higher than state average
--- 68.4% higher than national average
#11. Saint Tammany Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 77.7 per 100 people
--- 13.8% higher than state average
--- 79.4% higher than national average
#10. Iberia Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 84.4 per 100 people
--- 23.6% higher than state average
--- 94.9% higher than national average
#9. Richland Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 85.4 per 100 people
--- 25.0% higher than state average
--- 97.2% higher than national average
#8. Orleans Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 87.6 per 100 people
--- 28.3% higher than state average
--- 102.3% higher than national average
#7. Lafayette Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 88.2 per 100 people
--- 29.1% higher than state average
--- 103.7% higher than national average
#6. Jefferson Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 88.6 per 100 people
--- 29.7% higher than state average
--- 104.6% higher than national average
#5. Ouachita Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 93.9 per 100 people
--- 37.5% higher than state average
--- 116.9% higher than national average
#4. East Baton Rouge Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 98.2 per 100 people
--- 43.8% higher than state average
--- 126.8% higher than national average
#3. Evangeline Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 103.1 per 100 people
--- 51.0% higher than state average
--- 138.1% higher than national average
#2. Rapides Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 117.4 per 100 people
--- 71.9% higher than state average
--- 171.1% higher than national average
#1. Caddo Parish
- Opioid dispensing rate: 134.5 per 100 people
--- 96.9% higher than state average
--- 210.6% higher than national average
