STICK WITH THE WINNERS! –
July 14, 2026 – Harry Nelson is a healthcare attorney, author, speaker, and policy commentator in his 3rd decade as a nationally recognized voice on addiction, healthcare policy, and the future of medicine and behavioral health. He is the author of several books, including The United States of Opioids: A Prescription for Liberating a Nation in Pain.
Q. If you are in recovery, what was your drug(s) of choice and when is your sobriety date?
A. I am not personally in recovery (if I was, it would be for disordered eating more than alcohol or drugs), but my life and work have been deeply shaped by people in recovery, by families affected by addiction, and by the urgent need to build a more effective response to addiction.
Q. Do you think addiction is an illness, disease, a choice, or a wicked twist of fate?
A. I think of addiction as a disease, but one that has been misunderstood because it expresses itself behaviorally, socially, spiritually, medically, and legally all at once.
Q. Where are you from and where do you reside now?
A. I was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, but I grew up in suburban Detroit. I lived in Hawaii after law school and then Chicago. I’ve been living in L.A. 25 years.
