"I Was A Drug Addict" Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Plans "Healing Centers" To Combat Opioids

"I Was A Drug Addict" Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Plans "Healing Centers" To Combat Opioids

May 25, 2023

Ask Dr. Drew

In an exclusive interview with Dr. Drew, 2024 Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. revealed his plan for nationwide "healing centers" to combat fentanyl addiction and the opioid epidemic. "I was a drug addict myself for 14 years," says RFK. "So I've been thinking about sobriety for 40 years."

Kennedy's prominent political family – including his uncle President John F. Kennedy and his father Robert F. Kennedy – are no strangers to the heartbreaking effects of addiction.

"I think last year had 106,000 opioid deaths. That's almost twice the number of kids that were killed in the Vietnam War in 20 years," said Kennedy. "I don't think there's a family in this country whose lives have not been touched. My family certainly has. I lost a couple of my brothers. I lost a niece during the pandemic to opioid overdoses."

In response, RFK proposed his plan to launch "healing centers" across the country, modeled after the programs that supported his own sobriety.

"Drug addiction for me was kind of a shortcut to spirituality in a weird way... It comes from a disconnectedness and a hunger and an empty space inside of you," said Kennedy. "Addiction is a disease of isolation... recovery is about re-establishing connections to other people and with community."

Dr. Drew – a board-certified physician and addiction medicine specialist for over 30 years – was supportive of RFK's proposal.

"I can support virtually every word that came out of your mouth about addiction and some of these models for treatment," Dr. Drew responded.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is an attorney and a 2024 U.S Presidential Candidate. He is a graduate of Harvard University, studied at the London School of Economics, and received his law degree from the University of Virginia Law School. He served on the Pace Law School faculty from 1986 to 2018 and cofounded and supervised Pace’s Environmental Litigation Clinic.

For more from Robert F. Kennedy Jr's interview with Dr. Drew Pinsky and physician Dr. Kelly Victory – including his thoughts on Big Pharma, the CIA, Anthony Fauci, and the CDC – watch the full interview: Robert F. Kennedy Jr - https://youtu.be/3XADQT9zn48

Original: https://youtu.be/IEO5hlsO8lI

FULL EPISODE: https://drdrew.com/3252022

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Dr. Kelly Victory MD is a board-certified trauma and emergency specialist with over 30 years of clinical experience. She served as CMO for Whole Health Management, delivering on-site healthcare services for Fortune 500 companies. She holds a BS from Duke University and her MD from the University of North Carolina. Follow her at https://earlycovidcare.org

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