Federal Drug Czar and Rep. Bono Mack Speak At Betty Ford Center

The country's "drug czar,'' in a speech today at the Betty Ford Center, said talking to people in treatment and recovery for prescription drug abuse, and their families, was key to changing Washington's approach to the issue.

Gil Kerlikowske, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, was introduced at the Rancho Mirage addiction treatment center by Rep. Mary Bono Mack, R-Palm Springs, who co-chairs the Congressional Caucus
on Prescription Drug Abuse.

Bono Mack said she is inspired by parents who have lost children to prescription drug abuse.

"Without their support, I couldn't do what I do in the halls of Congress. And they inspire me every day to try and fight this fight, and we're all in this together,'' she said.

So far, the congresswoman said, the battle is being lost because of the
number of people dying from drug abuse.

"Washington has to change its way of thinking, and I have no better
partner in trying to look at this through a new lens than the director,'' she
said.

Kerlikowske thanked parents who lost children to substance abuse for
sharing their stories.

"We all owe them a debt of gratitude because they're doing something
about it,'' he said.

He said the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy has undergone a "paradigm shift'' in its approach to drug policy. In the past, he said, the importance of recovery was often overlooked.

"You carved a path, and I'm here to say that in the past few years a lot has changed,'' he told those assembled at the Betty Ford Center.

"We didn't talk much -- kind of surprising coming from inside the Beltway -- but we didn't talk much, we listened -- to parents who lost children, we listened to people in recovery, people in treatment, we listened to drug court judges. We listened to a lot of people, and those are the voices that are in the national drug control strategy,'' he said.

"... As part of the paradigm shift, we made the unprecedented effort to
listen to people who personally suffered from addiction and have overcome one
of the most challenging public health problems of our time,'' Kerlikowske said.
"And for us, listening to the recovery community has been vital ... those
people and those they work with offer a wealth of knowledge about what it's
like to be in recovery, what works and frankly what doesn't. Those voices
should ring clear in drug policy now and in the future.''

Kerlikowske, a former Seattle police chief appointed to his Obama administration cabinet post in 2009, said the goal is "lifting the stigma surrounding those who suffer from addiction.''

He said the national debate about drug control has "lurched between
these extremes, between those who that argue, well, drug legalization is a
straightforward solution, and those who believe we can just arrest our way to a
drug-free society. ... Now all too often the national conversation about drug
policy misses (the) point that millions of people, real people, are in lasting
recovery and that our policies need to support them.''

He said that by talking about addiction "in light of day and by celebrating recovery out loud, we can help correct the misinformation (that's) out here and the stigma and obstacles for people who want to live healthy, productive lives.''

Kerlikowske said it is fitting that he speak at the Betty Ford Center nearly a year after the death of its founder, who died last July 8.

"We honor her as a recovery champion unafraid to break taboos and speak
about issues that affect the lives of millions who need attention but are too
often kept in the shadows,'' he said of the late former first lady.

The Obama administration is building upon her legacy "in an unprecedented way'' by bringing recovery to the center of drug control policy for the first time, Kerlikowske said.

"This is is significant because it has has brought a new perspective to
the way government responds to the drug problem,'' he said.

He said his office is working to expand access to treatment, urging examination of laws meant to deter drug use and unintentionally hurt people on the path to recovery, and working to strengthen community-based health and recovery programs.

Treatment access would include vouchers for recovery services, meetings,
transportation and other needs. Community programs include recovery schools,
peer-led programs and drug courts, Kerlikowske said.

"The work that gets done is done at the grassroots level; it's done at
the local level,'' he said.