Cammie Wolf Rice: Atlanta-based nonprofit is leading the fight against opioid addiction

We are in the middle of the deadliest drug crisis in U.S. history, with more than 105,000 deaths caused by overdose in 2023 alone. And, unfortunately, Georgia has not been spared.

From 2010 to 2022, opioid-related deaths in our state skyrocketed by 302%. We like to think of addiction as something that happens somewhere else, to someone else. But addiction doesn’t discriminate. These are our sons and daughters, high school athletes prescribed opioids for an injury or children struggling with chronic conditions. They are mothers, fathers and even grandparents using opioids to cope with acute and chronic pain.

I myself never imagined my family would be affected by the opioid crisis. But on Feb. 26, 2016, my world changed forever. I lost my son, Christopher, to substance misuse. He was only 32 years old.

His addiction all started with a doctor’s prescription. He was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis at 12 years old and, after surgery, he was prescribed round-the-clock opioids to manage his pain. I followed the doctor’s instructions, never questioning the risks. But we had no education, no warning and no idea that this medication — marketed as safe — would be the start of his long battle with addiction.

I stayed silent for two years after Christopher’s death, buried in grief. Then, I lost my brother, Roger, to fentanyl poisoning. A friend had given him a Xanax for anxiety — but the counterfeit pill had a trace of fentanyl, enough to take his life. Losing them both made my purpose painfully clear: Fighting the opioid epidemic and fentanyl crisis is not just my mission, it is my life’s assignment.

I couldn’t sit back in silence and watch more families suffer. I started asking myself the questions that no one seemed to be answering. We have life coaches, business coaches, even sleep coaches — but where is the coach when we’re having a health crisis? That missing piece in our health care system is what drove me to create the Life Care Specialist role in honor of my son.

I founded CWC Alliance, a nonprofit dedicated to preventing addiction before it ever starts. If dependence can begin in a hospital bed, then so can intervention. The Life Care Specialist steps in at that crucial moment, offering evidence-based pain management techniques, education on opioid addiction and overdose, and trauma-informed emotional support. We recognize that there are times when opioids are necessary for pain management, which is why the LCS offers patients guidance on safely tapering off as soon as possible. They work alongside doctors and nurses to build a custom care plan for every patient so healing can take place in the mind, body and spirit. They are an integrated part of the health care teams who advocate for patient needs.

In 2020, we launched the first LCS program at Grady Memorial Hospital, one of the nation’s busiest trauma centers. The impact was immediate. Doctors and nurses, who for years had no choice but to rely on opioids for pain management, now have another option. One nurse shared the difference this made in her work: “Before, the only tool I had when a patient pressed the pain button was an opioid. Now, I have the Life Care Specialist.” Our clinical study found that patients who saw an LCS were discharged with 25% less opioid pain medication than those who did not interact with an LCS.

Today, the LCS role is in 10 hospitals and growing. It has been recognized by Harvard as a case study in innovative care, proving that simple, proactive interventions can change lives. On Dec. 11, 2024, I had the opportunity to present the Life Care Specialist model before the House Study Committee on Alternatives to Opioids for Pain Management at the Georgia House of Representatives. I shared Christopher’s story — the preventable tragedy that changed my life — and explained how the LCS program was already making an impact in these hospitals. The response was overwhelming. The committee gave the following recommendation to the Georgia House of Representatives: for the Technical College System of Georgia to create a systemwide curriculum for Life Care Specialists with the goal of having this role in every hospital throughout the state.

The committee also recommended a Pain Awareness event at the state Capitol to engage lawmakers on the importance of access and choice for patients, along with expanded local opioid disposal programs to prevent unused prescriptions from fueling addiction. To make sure more patients have access to safer alternatives, the committee called for broader insurance coverage of non-opioid pain treatments through Medicaid and private insurers. Finally, they stressed the importance of education for both prescribers and patients, so that opioid prescriptions are never the default solution when safer options exist.

When it comes to the LCS position, thanks to opioid settlement funds and our partners, we are able to expand into rural hospitals in Georgia, Arkansas and beyond, ensuring that no community, no matter how small, is left behind. We welcome any hospital that is interested in bringing the LCS program to their facility to apply to be part of this expansion. Through our work, I am constantly reminded that my son did not die in vain, and his legacy continues to live on in every patient we help.

The opioid crisis is not an abstract issue — it is a public health emergency that continues to claim lives every day in Georgia and the U.S. at large. But we have a chance to make a difference. Hospitals, provide patients with real alternatives to their pain management plans. Legislators, we need you to fund prevention, not just treatment. Families, don’t wait until it’s too late — ask the hard questions, know your options and learn the risks.

The solutions exist. The time to act is now.

Cammie Wolf Rice is founder and CEO of CWC Alliance.