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The Pain Was Unbearable. So Why Did Doctors Turn Her Away?

Assistant Professor of Economics Angela Kilby has extensively researched the algorithms that the US health care system relies on to detect opioid abuse. Her research demonstrates that the algorithms are flawed and problematic.

by Maia Szalavitz, Wired August 11, 2021

“There is just no correlation whatsoever between the likelihood of being said to be high risk by the algorithm and the reduction in the probability of developing opioid use disorder.”

Angela Kilby

Excerpt

In fact, [Angela Kilby’s] research showed that cutting back on medical opioid prescriptions led to increased medical spending, higher levels of pain in hospitalized patients, and more missed workdays. “These are people who are probably losing access to opioids, who are struggling more to return to work after injuries and struggling to get pain treatment,” she says.

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