Could opioid laws help curb domestic violence? New USF research says yes

TAMPA, Fla. (April 18, 2025) – A new study led by the University of South Florida reveals opioid control policies may offer broader public health benefits, including reducing instances of domestic violence. As policymakers continue to grapple with the opioid epidemic, this study highlights the power of research to inform effective public policy.

The research conducted by USF doctoral student Minglu Sun and Andrei Barbos, associate professor of economics, underscores how opioid abuse can cause a powerful ripple effect across society.

Published in Health Economics, the study analyzes the impact on the prevalence of domestic violence in Mandatory Access Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs. These opioid control programs require health care providers to consult a centralized database before prescribing opioids, helping prevent patients from obtaining multiple prescriptions from multiple doctors. In the early 2010s, states began passing laws that mandated the use of these databases after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other agencies said they were a key tool to combat misuse of opioids.

“The staggered rollout of these programs across the country offered a unique opportunity to analyze their effects over time and across different regions, which allowed us to isolate the effects of these opioid control programs on the prevalence of domestic violence from other factors, such as economic cycles, concurrent policy changes or broader crime trends,” Barbos said.

With data from the National Incident-Based Reporting System, they compiled reports from 31 states between 2007 and 2019 to create controlled models for dynamic variables including demographics, income, unemployment, health status, insurance coverage and overlapping regulations, such as legalized marijuana.

Sun and Barbos found that these opioid control programs not only curb misuse but contributed to a 10% reduction in the prevalence of simple assaults, which account for nearly 75% of domestic violence incidents in the data. Simple assaults are generally defined as an attempt to cause physical harm to another person that does not involve a weapon or result in serious injury.

The effect was strongest in states with the highest opioid prescription rates. According to the CDC, southern states consistently exhibit higher rates – reinforcing the connection between opioid access and domestic violence.

“Earlier public health literature documented a correlation between opioid consumption and domestic violence, but correlation does not imply a causal relationship,” Barbos said. “This article establishes a causal relationship and provides policy makers with evidence of an additional positive spillover of opioid control policies, which may also be relevant for the policy design surrounding the current fentanyl crisis.”

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About the University of South Florida 

The University of South Florida, a high-impact research university dedicated to student success and committed to community engagement, generates an annual economic impact of more than $6 billion. Across campuses in Tampa, St. Petersburg, Sarasota-Manatee and USF Health, USF serves approximately 50,000 students who represent nearly 150 different countries. U.S. News & World Report has ranked USF as one of the nation’s top 50 public universities for six consecutive years and, for the second straight year, as the best value university in Florida. In 2023, USF became the first public university in Florida in nearly 40 years to be invited to join the Association of American Universities, a group of the leading 3% of universities in the United States and Canada. With an all-time high of $738 million in research funding in 2024 and a ranking as a top 20 public university for producing new U.S. patents, USF is a leader in solving global problems and improving lives. USF is a member of the American Athletic Conference. Learn more at www.usf.edu.

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