590. Can $55 Billion End the Opioid Epidemic?

In his final years, Richard Feynman's curiosity took him to some surprising places. We hear from his companions on the trips he took — and one he wasn’t able to. (Part three of a three-part series originally published in 2024.) SOURCES: Alan Alda, actor and screenwriter. Barbara ...  Show more

What happens when an existentially depressed and recently widowed young physicist from Queens gets a fresh start in California? We follow Richard Feynman out west, to explore his long and extremely fruitful second act. (Part two of a three-part series originally published in 2024 ...  Show more

Mark Parrino has been involved with the delivery of health care and treatment for opioid use disorder (OUD) since 1974. As the president of the American Association for the Treatment of Opioid Dependence, Inc. (AATOD), he works with treatment providers across the country to devel ...  Show more

In the U.S. doctors often prescribe opioids for pain management, and it's no secret that these substances are a big business for pharmaceutical companies -- and, increasingly, it's no secret that exposure to these legal pills are turning patients into unwilling addicts. So how ex ...  Show more

"We should never, ever forget that addiction treatment is a search for meaning in a place other than using drugs."

—Nancy Campbell, historian of drug addiction

(This is the third and final chapter of a three-part se ...

This episode is brought to you by Cozy Earth, InisdeTracker, and Rupa Health. If you or a loved one struggle with addiction, this is an episode you’re going to want to listen to. Many of our current pharmaceuticals stem from compounds discovered in plant medicines. And many benef ...  Show more