On November 14, 2019, Friends of CLARE|Matrix will be honoring writer, attorney, and advocate Harry J. Nelson with the Spirit Award at its 22nd Annual Tribute Dinner. Nelson is the author of the best-selling book, The United States of Opioids: A Prescription for Liberating in Pain (Forbes 2019), which details the lessons of work in the trenches of reshaping laws, regulations, and standards to expand access and improve the quality and safety of addiction treatment and behavioral health. The book has garnered praise nationally for its solution-focused framework for addressing the Opioid Crisis and the interwoven problems of overdoses, addiction, and chronic pain. Nelson is also the healthcare chair and firm partner of Leech Tishman Nelson Hardiman, the leading law firm representing behavioral health providers in California and nationally. Nelson’s work has continued to California and federal policy related to recovery housing access, overdose prevention, and reducing patient brokering.
“Harry has been a trusted advisor and friend to CLARE|Matrix,” said Lisa Steele, Ph.D., CEO of CLARE|Matrix. “We are proud to honor him. We are aligned with and consider it a priority to call attention to his message about the work ahead of us.” CLARE|Matrix is a leading nonprofit dedicated to recovery from substance abuse. In 2018, CLARE Foundation and The Matrix Institute on Addictions merged to combine over 85 years of experience in residential and outpatient addiction treatment, prevention, behavioral health support, research and training. CLARE|MATRIX’s mission is to change the lives of individuals and families and strengthen communities affected by alcohol, substance use, and behavioral health issues by providing proven and effective treatment, education, research, and training. In addition to the over 100,000 lives CLARE|MATRIX has saved through recovery, our staff also has trained more than 6,000 individuals in 50 states and 21 countries to offer the acclaimed Matrix Model.
“I am humbled by CLARE|Matrix’s recognition,” said Harry Nelson. “This organization and its leadership are doing work that both saves lives on the ground everyday and, at the same time, charts a course for meeting the needs ahead in a rapidly transforming set of challenges.”
Proceeds from the Annual Tribute Dinner will power the work of providing services to all individuals and ensuring that income not be a barrier to treatment. The Tribute Dinner will take place on November 14th at Fairmont Hotel in Santa Monica.