OUR COMMUNITY

40 | MAY 19 • 2022 

A

merica’s opioid crisis is about more 
than a few villains in the medical 
and pharmaceutical industries, says 
Harry Nelson. He will address the topic as 
the guest speaker at this year’s Nelson Legacy 
Event June 8-9 at Congregation Beth Shalom 
in Oak Park.
At the keynote lecture at 7:30 p.m. 
Wednesday, June 8, Nelson will explore the 
roots of the opioid crisis in terms of over-
doses and addiction and suggest ways to 
confront the problems. At a lunch-and-learn 
program at 12:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 9, 
Nelson will offer a Jewish response to the 
opioid crisis, exploring timely sources from 
the Torah to modern commentary.
Nelson, 54, is the son of the congregation’s 
Rabbi Emeritus David Nelson and his wife, 
Alicia Nelson. He grew up in Southfield, 
attending Hillel Day School and Southfield 
High School before earning degrees from the 
University of Michigan and the University of 
Michigan Law School.
He lives in Los Angeles with his wife, 
Dorit. They have two sons and two daugh-
ters, ages 14 to 21. He is a partner in a 

20-attorney firm, Nelson Hardiman LLP
, 
which specializes in healthcare and life sci-
ence issues.
He has written two books about health 
care in the United States, From ObamaCare to 
TrumpCare: Why You Should Care, co-authored 
by Rob Fuller and published in 2017, and 
The United States of Opioids: 
A Prescription for Liberating a 
Nation in Pain, published in 
2019. He has received numer-
ous awards for his efforts, 
including the Behavioral 
Health Network’s Advocacy 
Award and the Spirit Award 
from CLARE Matrix.
Nelson says he thinks of 
the opioid problem as a series 
of related but distinct crises 
around pain (a problem 
for 20 percent of American 
adults), a crackdown on doctors who pre-
scribe pain medications and the way phar-
macies deal with opioid dispensation.
“By the early 2010s, I had gotten very 
involved in advising addiction treatment and 

mental health programs, and I began to get 
multiple phone calls every month from pro-
grams round the country dealing with drug 
overdose deaths in facilities,
” he said.
He found the work to be gripping but was 
disturbed that he was called in only to clean 
up the mess after problems presented them-
selves. “I became obsessed with overdose 
prevention,
” he said.
As he thought about the opioid crisis, 
he was bothered that discussion seemed to 
focus on looking to blame “villains” such as 
Purdue Pharma, the Sackler family and per-
missive doctors, rather than delving into the 
structural problems that drove the crisis. He 
strove for a more solution-based approach.
“The pandemic accelerated the problem, 
taking overdose deaths over the 10,000-per-
year mark, and the need for action became 
more pressing,
” he said. “I have come to the 
view that, while societal solutions are a ways 
off, there are powerful lessons for all of us in 
our lives and in the outreach we can make to 
the people close to us.
”
After publishing the book, he was invited 
to join the national board of Project Opioid, 
working on overdose prevention.
Admission to the Wednesday keynote 
lecture, which includes a dessert reception, is 
$15 in advance and $20 at the door. A Zoom 
option is also available. Admission to the 
lunch-and-learn program, with food provid-
ed by Bloom Kosher Catering, is $25, and 
reservations are a must. Reservations can 
be made by emailing the synagogue at cbs@
congbethshalom.org or calling the office at 
(248) 547-7970.
Rabbi David and Alicia 
Nelson started the Nelson 
Legacy Fund in 2010 to provide 
educational and operational 
support for the community, 
including Congregation Beth 
Shalom, which Rabbi Nelson 
served for 36 years.
Co-sponsors include 
Congregation Beth Shalom, 
the Detroit Jewish News the IRP 
of the Jewish Community 
Center, the Maimonides Society 
of the Jewish Federation of 
Metropolitan Detroit, the Jewish Addiction 
Resource Alliance (a specialized program of 
Jewish Family Service) the Tri-Community 
Coalition Preventing Substance Abuse 
Together and the Nelson Legacy Fund. 

Nelson Legacy Event 
Tackles Opioid Crisis

Health care expert Harry Nelson to be guest 
speaker at Congregation Beth Shalom event. 

BARBARA LEWIS CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Harry 
Nelson