FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 17, 2016
HealthRIGHT 360 Statement on the Surgeon General’s Report:
Facing Addiction in America
By Vitka Eisen, MSW, Ed.D, Chief Executive Officer
SAN FRANCISCO — Today, HealthRIGHT 360, one of California’s largest community health care providers and addiction treatment pioneers, issued a statement in response to the Surgeon General’s groundbreaking report, Facing Addiction In America (https://addiction.surgeongeneral.gov):
“As a provider of substance use disorder treatment services for 28 years and a person in long-term recovery from heroin addiction, I applaud the Surgeon General’s report, Facing Addiction in America. In a time when our country’s very real opioid epidemic has eclipsed the conversation about addiction, this report addresses the misuse of all substances – legal and illegal. Using the full wattage of his office, Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy is shining a light on what those of us at the forefront of the field have understood for a while: that addiction is a chronic health condition and disease of the brain, and not a moral failing. In fact, Dr. Murthy’s message to us through this report is that our response to this health crisis presents a moral test for our nation.
The report could not be more timely. Dr. Murthy is calling out our nation’s dire need to invest in addiction care at the very moment when what healthcare looks like, and who has access to it, is up for consideration in Washington. Millions of Americans are at risk for being cut off from the lifeline that health insurance provides, including treatment for substance use disorders. The Surgeon General’s report gifts us sound recommendations for how we can pull our country out of this crisis. Clearly we have the tools and roadmap to restore the health of our loved ones struggling with addiction, to protect our children from alcohol and illicit drugs, and to reduce the devastating cost of substance misuse and addiction on our communities and our country as a whole. The only moral question that should be ascribed to addiction is what we, as a nation, are willing to do about it.”
About HealthRIGHT 360
For nearly 50 years, HealthRIGHT 360 has provided primary medical care, mental health services and substance-use disorder treatment to help the most vulnerable members of our community rise and make positive change – for themselves, their families and their community. HealthRIGHT 360’s family of programs includes Asian American Recovery Services, Haight Ashbury Free Clinics, Lyon-Martin Health Services, North County Serenity House, Prototypes, Rock Medicine, Tenderloin Health Services, Walden House and Women’s Recovery Association. HealthRIGHT 360 is a vital part of California’s health care landscape. It gives hope, builds health and changes lives for people in need.
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Media Contact:
Serene Buckley | Fineman PR
sbuckley@finemanpr.com
415-392-1000
