Boston Medical Center will launch the Grayken Center for Addiction Medicine after receiving a $25 million donation to fund the center, according a report from the Boston Globe.
Billionaire investor John Grayken and his wife Eilene made the donation, which represents the largest amount ever given to BMC.
"We have not seen private philanthropy in the addiction space to the extent we see it in other areas of healthcare, like cancer," said Michael Botticelli, former White House drug czar and head of the Massachusetts Bureau of Substance Abuse Services who's previously worked with BMC, told the Globe. "There's an idea that people with substance abuse disorders are somehow less deserving of care and treatment and compassion ... and issues of addiction can be seen as unpopular programs for unpopular people. So this family's donation is particularly important, because they want to be open about who they are to spur other philanthropy in this space."
BMC is the largest provider of safety-net care to low income patients in the New England Region. The hospital is a national forerunner in the establishment of best practices for the treatment of drug addicted patients and provides essential care to Boston's most vulnerable patients. The stretch of road outside its doors is known by locals as the "Methadone Mile." In 2015, an estimated 1,659 deaths were related to opioid abuse in Massachusetts.
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