“We have to hammer on the abusers in every way possible, they are the culprits and the problem. They are reckless criminals.” - Dr. Richard Sackler The multibillion-dollar Opioid Settlement. The infamous first family of overdose deaths, the real criminals get awarded immunity. The “abusers” get hammered, once again. Families lost their chance at justice. … Continue reading The Opioid Settlement, Stigma, Disempowerment, and Nonconsensual Third-Party Releases
Author: billstaufferpa
William Stauffer has been the Executive Director of Pennsylvania Recovery Organization Alliance (PRO-A), the statewide recovery organization of Pennsylvania. He is in long-term recovery since age 21 and has been actively engaged in public policy in the recovery arena for most of those years. He is also an adjunct professor of Social Work at Misericordia University in Dallas Pennsylvania. He holds a Bachelors in Social work degree from Cedar Crest College and a Masters Degree from Kutztown University.
William Stauffer has initiated numerous workforce expansion initiatives for persons in recovery. A major focus of his work has been aimed at moving our entire SUD care system towards a five-year care paradigm to dramatically expand the numbers of Americans in Recovery while saving lives, resources, and communities. Mr. Stauffer has been a staunch advocate for strong SUD Patient Privacy Protections at both the state and federal levels for many years. He ran a recovery house taskforce for the Pennsylvania that helped inform PA Act 59 of 2017. In 2018, he testified in front of the US Senate Special Committee on Aging on the opioid epidemic and older adults, and in 2019, he conducted a hearing with the PA House Human Services Committee to expand recovery opportunities for young people.
He is co-chair of the public policy committee for Faces & Voices of Recovery and the 2019 recipient of the Vernon Johnson Award Individual Recovery Advocate of the year. Mr. Stauffer was also the 2002 Recipient of the Lecie G. Machell prize in Social Work and, prior to taking the position of executive director of PRO-A , received Pennsylvania Recovery Organization Alliances award of the Recovery Advocate of the year, in 2008.
Homogenizing Addiction & Recovery
The other day, as I was going through social media, I saw a friend talking about being in a store when an alarm went off when what he had purchased set off an anti-theft device. He spoke about what a great feeling it was to stop and wait for a clerk to deal with the … Continue reading Homogenizing Addiction & Recovery
Interview #11 Dr H. Westley Clark – Reflections on the Historic 2001 Recovery Summit in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and the Start of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement
Forward: I first met Dr. H. Westley Clark. MD, JD around the year 2000, when I heard him speak at an event in Philadelphia. He has had such a huge positive influence work to move our SUD care system towards a recovery focus. He is still very active in the field in his current position … Continue reading Interview #11 Dr H. Westley Clark – Reflections on the Historic 2001 Recovery Summit in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and the Start of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement
Interview #10 William Cope Moyers – Reflections on the Historic 2001 Recovery Summit in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and the start of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement
Forward: We have a long and rich history of recovery in America. It is vital to understand the effort that has gone into providing avenues into recovery. It has taken an incredible effort over many generations to get us as far as we are in respect to eliminating disparate care and discrimination, improving access to … Continue reading Interview #10 William Cope Moyers – Reflections on the Historic 2001 Recovery Summit in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and the start of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement
Interview #9 – Bev Haberle Reflections on the Historic 2001 Recovery Summit in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the Start of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement
Forward: I have known Bev Haberle and her work for a long time. We are both from Eastern Pennsylvania and our paths crossed regularly over the years. I brought her staff into the residential facility I ran in the early 2000s to meet and engage our alumni. Bev served for many years as the Executive … Continue reading Interview #9 – Bev Haberle Reflections on the Historic 2001 Recovery Summit in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the Start of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement
Interview #8 – Johnny Allem Reflections on the Historic 2001 Recovery Summit in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the Start of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement
Forward: Johnny Allem has a long and honorable history in service to the recovery community. In the preparation for this interview, I learned of a connection between my organization, PRO-A and Johnny I had not known about. PRO-A was formed in 1998 to bring together the statewide recovery community of Pennsylvania. In those early days, … Continue reading Interview #8 – Johnny Allem Reflections on the Historic 2001 Recovery Summit in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the Start of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement
Interview #7 – Phil Valentine, Reflections on the Historic 2001 Recovery Summit in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the start of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement
Forward: I have met Phil Valentine a few times over the years. However, this was the first time I had a chance to sit down and have a direct conversation with him. Most of what I know about his work has come from hearing about how instrumental his ideas were to the development of peer … Continue reading Interview #7 – Phil Valentine, Reflections on the Historic 2001 Recovery Summit in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the start of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement
Interview #6 Dona Dmitrovic – Reflections on the historic 2001 Recovery Summit in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the start of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement
Forward: I first met Dona as she got PRO-A off the ground in those early years of the recovery movement here in Pennsylvania. PRO-A was one of the first statewide Recovery Community Organizations (RCOs) in the nation. I don’t even think I had heard of an RCO before I met Dona. She has had a … Continue reading Interview #6 Dona Dmitrovic – Reflections on the historic 2001 Recovery Summit in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the start of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement
Interview #5 Tom Hill – Reflections on the Historic 2001 Recovery Summit in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the start of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement
Forward: Few people have had as much impact on the way we think about recovery advocacy in America as has Tom Hill. He has been generous of his time with so very many of us in our efforts to strengthen recovery community organizations across the nation. Tom mentored me in his prior role as Senior … Continue reading Interview #5 Tom Hill – Reflections on the Historic 2001 Recovery Summit in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the start of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement
Interview #4 Ben Bass – Reflections on the historic 2001 Recovery Summit in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the start of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement
Forward: As I was calling around to set up interviews, Ben Bass came up in several conversations. Several people in attendance told me he was at the historic St Paul 2001 Recovery Summit. When I did this interview and spoke with him about the summit and his recollections of the beginnings of the new recovery … Continue reading Interview #4 Ben Bass – Reflections on the historic 2001 Recovery Summit in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the start of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement