If you’re wondering, “Is Vicodin an opioid?”, the answer is yes. It is a prescription opioid used to treat pain. It is made in a lab from natural opioids and is much like morphine in producing opiate effects. The Vicodin is formed by combining the generic drug, hydrocodone, with acetaminophen. Hydrocodone is a synthetic opioid that operates in the same way as an opiate drug like heroin. The Drug Enforcement Agency labeled Vicodin as a Schedule III Control Substance but changed it later to Schedule II in 2014. Vicodin is a true opioid — the same drug family as oxycodone and heroin — and it can lead to dependence and addiction even when a doctor prescribed it. The familiar brand name and the slip of paper from the pharmacy make it easy to think it’s just Vicodin. Vicodin was a strong prescription combination pain medicine containing an opioid, hydrocodone, in addition to acetaminophen, which was used to manage pain severe enough to require an opioid pain medicine, when other pain treatments such as non-opioid pain medicines did not relieve pain well enough, or were not tolerated. Norco and Vicodin are prescription combination tablets that both contain the opioid hydrocodone with acetaminophen, used for moderate to severe pain. The main difference is the amount of acetaminophen in each. Vicodin is an opioid painkiller that contains a combination of hydrocodone (the semi-synthetic opioid) and acetaminophen (a pain reliever and fever reducer). Pain is relieved when the hydrocodone acts on the central nervous system while acetaminophen further decreases pain and reduces fever. Vicodin (hydrocodone / acetaminophen) is a combination of two medications that work together to treat pain. Hydrocodone is an opioid. It attaches to certain mu-opioid receptors in your brain to lower how much pain you feel. Acetaminophen is an analgesic. It blocks the production of certain chemicals in your brain that play a role in pain.