Morphine Sulfate
Brand names: Morphine Sulfate Er, Ms Contin, Morphine Sulfate
Part of: Opioid painkillers
At a glance
- Medicare prescriptions, 2024
- 2,182,818
- Medicare drug cost
- $64.6M
- Average cost per prescription
- $29.61
- Clinicians who prescribed it
- 39,561
Where it is prescribed
List the prescribers in any state, county, city or ZIP code →
What it is used for
Morphine sulfate extended-release tablets are indicated for the management of pain severe enough to require daily, around-the-clock, long-term opioid treatment and for which alternative treatment options are inadequate.
From the FDA-approved prescribing information (label dated April 2026). Full labels on DailyMed (opens in a new tab)
Boxed warning
WARNING: ADDICTION, ABUSE, AND MISUSE; RISK EVALUATION AND MITIGATION STRATEGY (REMS); LIFE-THREATENING RESPIRATORY DEPRESSION; ACCIDENTAL INGESTION; NEONATAL OPIOID WITHDRAWAL SYNDROME; and RISKS FROM CONCOMITANT USE WITH BENZODIAZEPINES OR OTHER CNS DEPRESSANTS
The FDA’s strongest warning on a label. It doesn’t mean the drug is unsafe for most people; talk to your doctor or pharmacist before stopping or changing any medicine.
Who prescribes it
- Pain Medicine 24.3%
- Nurse Practitioners 22.2%
- Family Medicine 14.1%
- Physician Assistants 12.0%
- Internal Medicine 8.8%
- Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation (PM&R) 5.1%
- Anesthesiology 2.5%
- Hematology & Oncology 2.3%
- Hospice & Palliative Medicine 1.9%
- Medical Oncology 0.8%
- Neurology 0.8%
- Geriatric Medicine 0.7%
All prescribers, by place, name or specialty →
Share of Medicare prescriptions written by each specialty. Select one to list its prescribers.
Trend, 2019–2024
Medicare prescriptions fell 22% from 2019 to 2024.
Biggest change by state since 2019
- Wyoming +3%
- Utah −10%
- Connecticut −10%
- North Carolina −10%
- Delaware −11%
- New Mexico (smallest change) −34%
- West Virginia (smallest change) −34%
From CMS’s yearly state and national Part D summaries, which count every prescriber, including those CMS leaves out of its per-clinician data (fewer than 11 prescriptions). That is why these totals are higher than the count at the top of this page. Prescriptions include refills.
What it looks like
Pills from 2 makers on file. The same medicine can look different depending on who made it, so check the imprint (the letters and numbers on the pill) with your pharmacist if a refill looks different.
Actavis Pharma, Inc.
| Strength | Looks like | Imprint |
|---|---|---|
| 30 mg | blue capsule, 16 mm | 3090 |
| 45 mg | purple capsule, 16 mm | 3116 |
| 60 mg | green capsule, 18 mm | 3091 |
| 75 mg | brown capsule, 20 mm | 3117 |
| 90 mg | green capsule, 19 mm | 3092 |
| 120 mg | blue capsule, 23 mm | 3093 |
Bryant Ranch Prepack
| Strength | Looks like | Imprint |
|---|---|---|
| 15 mg | blue round tablet, 7 mm | ABG 15 |
Source: DailyMed (U.S. National Library of Medicine), from each maker’s FDA drug listing. A few makers are shown, not every one. Never take a pill you can’t identify; ask a pharmacist.
Industry payments about this drug
Drug makers reported $807 in payments to clinicians that named this drug in 2025 (meals, speaking, consulting and similar).
- Piramal Critical Care $807
Source: CMS Open Payments, general payments (not research), program year 2025. A payment is not evidence of wrongdoing. Payments by doctor
Recalls and shortages
On the FDA shortage list now
- Morphine Sulfate, Injection, 10 mg/1 mL (NDC 63323-451-01) (Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC)
- Morphine Sulfate, Injection, 2 mg/1 mL (NDC 63323-452-01) (Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC)
- Morphine Sulfate, Injection, 2 mg/1 mL (NDC 76045-004-11) (Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC)
- Morphine Sulfate, Injection, 4 mg/1 mL (NDC 63323-454-01) (Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC)
- Morphine Sulfate, Injection, 4 mg/1 mL (NDC 76045-005-11) (Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC)
- Morphine Sulfate, Injection, 5 mg/1 mL (NDC 63323-455-01) (Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC)
- Morphine Sulfate, Injection, 10 mg/1 mL Syringes (NDC 0409-1893-01) (Hospira, Inc., A Pfizer Company)
- Morphine Sulfate, Injection, 10 mg/10 mL (1 mg/mL) (NDC 0409-3815-12) (Hospira, Inc., A Pfizer Company)
5 recalls since 2020
- Aug 2026 · Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC · Class I
Labeling: Label Mixup: MicroVault labeled as Morphine 2 mg/1 mL, contains a Prefilled Syringe of Dilaudid 0.5 mg/0.5 mL. - Nov 2025 · Winder Laboratories, LLC · Class III
Correct Labeled Product Mispack-Size stated on carton label did not match the size of the bottle in the carton. - Feb 2025 · Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Inc · Class II
Failed Dissolution Specifications - Mar 2024 · Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA Inc. · Class II
The filter included in the carton has an expiration date that has expired prior to the expiration date of the actual product lot. - Sep 2021 · Fresenius Kabi USA LLC · Class II
Defective container: Cracked vials leading to lack of sterility assurance
Recalls usually affect specific lots from one maker, not every version of a drug. Class I is the most serious; most drug recalls are Class II. FDA recalls (opens in a new tab)
Sources: CMS Medicare Part D Prescribers by Provider and Drug (2024; prescriptions include refills, and CMS hides counts under 11 per prescriber); U.S. Food and Drug Administration, openFDA (drug labels, NDC directory, enforcement reports, drug shortages); CMS Open Payments 2025; ClinicalTrials.gov. General information only, not medical advice; not yet reviewed by our medical reviewer.