Burden of Chronic and Heavy Opioid Use Among Elderly Community Dwellers in the U.S.

•The rate of opioid use among elderly U.S. community dwellers changed between 2006 and 2019.•Median opioid dosage and opioid duration increased for both male and female chronic and heavy users.•Those with lower income had higher prevalence, higher dosage, and longer duration than those with higher incomes.•Those with 2 or more comorbidities had higher prevalence but not higher dosage or longer duration than those with 1 or no comorbidities.