Impact of Michigan's New Opioid Laws on Spine Surgery Patients

This study investigated the effects of Michigan's new opioid prescribing laws on preoperative patient opioid use, patient reported outcomes, satisfaction after surgery, and readmission rates following spine surgery. The study found that the new laws decreased the use of narcotics preoperatively without impacting surgical outcomes, but there was a possible increase in readmissions due to pain postoperatively. Further studies are needed to examine physician prescribing patterns and patient use of narcotics.