Opioid painkillers

What these drugs are

Opioid painkillers treat moderate to severe pain. They are controlled substances with risks of dependence, overdose and dangerous interactions with sedatives.

Who prescribes it

• Family Medicine 20.1%
• Nurse Practitioners 18.6%
• Pain Medicine 13.8%
• Internal Medicine 13.3%
• Physician Assistants 11.4%
• Orthopedic Surgery 3.1%
• Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation (PM&R) 2.9%
• Emergency Medicine 1.6%
• Anesthesiology 1.4%
• Rheumatology 1.2%
• General Surgery 1.1%
• Hematology & Oncology 0.9%

See all specialties →

Share of Medicare prescriptions written by each specialty.

Industry payments about this drug

Drug makers reported $209,521 in payments to clinicians that named this group of drugs in 2025 (meals, speaking, consulting and similar).

• Forte Bio-pharma LLC $120,601
• Protega Pharmaceutials Inc $82,483
• Collegium Pharmaceutical, Inc. $3,398
• Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC $2,232
• Piramal Critical Care $807

See all companies →

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, 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, 4 mg/1 mL (NDC 63323-454-01) (Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC)
• Morphine Sulfate, Injection, 2 mg/1 mL (NDC 76045-004-11) (Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC)
• Morphine Sulfate, Injection, 2 mg/1 mL (NDC 63323-452-01) (Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC)
• Morphine Sulfate, Injection, 10 mg/1 mL (NDC 63323-451-01) (Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC)
• Morphine Sulfate, Injection, 2 mg/1 mL Syringes (NDC 0409-1890-01) (Hospira, Inc., A Pfizer Company)
• Morphine Sulfate, Injection, 10 mg/1 mL Syringes (NDC 0409-1893-01) (Hospira, Inc., A Pfizer Company)

12 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.
• Jan 2026 · Amerisource Health Services LLC · Class II
  Defective container: card seal defects (weak/non-existent seals), leading to the tablets falling out of their cavities.
• 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
• Jan 2025 · Alvogen, Inc · Class I
  Defective delivery system - patches could be multi-stacked, adhered one on top of the other, in a single product pouch.
• Apr 2024 · Rubicon Research Private Limited · Class II
  Presence of Foreign Tablets: Pharmacist reported a tablet of baclofen in a bottle of 1000-count tramadol
• 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.
• Oct 2023 · Zyla Life Sciences US Inc. · Class III
  Sub-potent Drug: Lower potency than labeled.

See all recalls →

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)