As opioid abuse ravages Illinois, lawmakers must take action to root out overprescription in the state’s workers’ compensation system.

Amazon’s plans to hire 50,000 workers at the new headquarters would single-handedly shift the city and state’s economic landscape.

Illinois has sued a pharmaceutical company over opioid marketing, yet state lawmakers refuse to reform a workers’ compensation system that encourages the overprescription of dangerous drugs.

Physician-dispensed drugs account for more than 60 percent of the cost of prescriptions covered by workers’ comp in Illinois.

The expiration of the state’s EDGE program – which has given large companies more than $1 billion in tax credits the last 15 years – is good news for taxpayers and should encourage lawmakers to pass real reforms.