While the number of deaths annually due to drug overdoses in the United States has been climbing steadily since 2000, over the last several years the rate of increase has accelerated.  The main factor responsible for this rise has been the increasing use and abuse of prescription and non-prescription opioids, which has reached such a scale that it is frequently referred to as the opioid epidemic, or the opioid crisis.  Many tactics have been suggested for addressing the opioid epidemic, including the use of certain information technology tools by health care providers.  Ultimately, the solution to the opioid epidemic will require many different tools, among which health information technologies can play an important part.