Sen. Biden Introduces Legislation to Help Erase Stigma of Addiction

Senator Biden proposes removing the unfortunate term "abuse" from federal addiction agencies:

Sen. Biden’s legislation (S. 1011) will change the name of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) to National Institute on Diseases of Addiction, and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) to the National Institute on Alcohol Disorders and Health.

“Addiction is a neurobiological disease – not a lifestyle choice – and it’s about time we start treating it as such,” said Sen. Biden. “We must lead by example and change the names of our Federal research institutes to accurately reflect this reality. By changing the way we talk about addiction, we change the way people think about addiction, both of which are critical steps in getting past the social stigma too often associated with the disease.”