Chief Medical Officer Professor Brendan Murphy has published an open letter apologising for any anxiety and distress he caused with a letter he sent out to almost 5000 GPs a year ago informing them that they were among the top 20% of opioid prescribers.

The current trend of opioid use worldwide, including in Australia, poses a significant risk to the health and wellbeing of individuals.

In Australia, approximately twice as many people die from pharmaceutical opioid overdose than from heroin overdose, and opioids are now the most commonly misused pharmaceutical group.

The 2016 National Drug Strategy Household Survey found 3.6% of Australians over the age of 14 reported recent misuse of prescription painkillers/analgesics and opioids.