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Minding Michigan: Removing stigma of addiction could improve opioid abuse treatment

Michigan Public | By Stateside Staff

Published July 7, 2016 at 5:34 PM EDT

According to Waller, opiate addiction is a chronic neurological disorder.

Our conversation with Dr. Corey Waller

"Minding Michigan" is Stateside's ongoing series that examines mental health issues in our state.

In 2014, Michigan became the first state to create a set of detailed guidelines for treating people addicted to heroin and otheropioid drugs.

The guidelines were praised by many in the treatment community as being clear, understandable and taking addiction treatment in Michigan to the next level.

Dr. Corey Waller is the doctor who wrote those guidelines.

At the time, he was based in Grand Rapids. Recently he became senior medical director for education and policy at the Camden Coalition of Healthcare Providers in New Jersey.

Waller joined us today on Stateside to talk about the guidelines and how effective they've been in the nearly two years since they were unveiled.

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Dr. Corey Waller is an addiction medicine specialist. He wrote the state guidelines for treating opiate addiction.