Shelly Weizman is the Associate Director of the Addiction and Public Policy Initiative at the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law and an Adjunct Professor of Law at Georgetown University Law Center. She works on a project portfolio focused on the opioid epidemic, addiction policies, barriers to treatment for substance use disorders, public health approaches to drug policies and how law can promote access to treatment and support recovery.

Before joining the Institute, Ms. Weizman worked as the Assistant Secretary for Mental Hygiene in the Office of Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York. In that role, she oversaw New York State’s efforts to address the opioid epidemic as well as policy and operations related to addiction, mental health and developmental disabilities. Prior to joining the Governor’s office, Ms. Weizman served as Policy Director for Managed Care at the New York State Office of Mental Health, where she focused on developing and implementing systemic reforms within New York’s public mental health system.

Shelly and James discuss her unique recovery journey that began during her teenage years while she was still in high school and how her experiences have led her to dedicating her career to driving change both through education and the public sector.