We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jeffrey Zipper a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Jeffrey, thanks for joining us today. Was there a defining moment in your professional career? A moment that changed the trajectory of your career?

After attending medical school I decided to do my residency training in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, sub-specializing in interventional pain management. Back in 1990 this was a new cutting edge specialty. Upon completion of my residency program, I left NYC for Florida where I started my first practice, the National Pain Institute. Over the years my practice grew into the largest regional provider of pain management services within the State of Florida.

In the mid to late 2000’s I served as president of the Florida Academy of Pain Medicine (FAPM). As such, I was tasked with helping the Florida legislature craft the States new “pill mill” bill to eliminate these pill mill providers from operating in our State. While the legislation was successful in eliminating disreputable physicians from practicing pain management without board certification, I knew just eliminating access to physician supplied opioids was not a cure for addiction. I was extremely concerned that a heroine epidemic would ensue within our State. Unfortunately nothing was done at the time to address addiction service needs and the opioid epidemic began.

Upon the sale of my company to a private equity concern, I became increasingly interested in the field of addiction medicine. My vision was to help solve the opioid epidemic by reducing the problems associated with attending treatment, such as stigma, cost and convenience. It wasn’t until congressional passage of the “Support for Communities Act” in 2019 that my vision could be realized. In June of 2019, iRecoveryUSA’s telehealth platform was launch and we went live treating patients throughout Florida.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

The addiction medicine physicians “tool box” for treating substance use disorder (SUD) has never been more robust in helping to reduce drug cravings and symptoms of withdrawal. Many patients suffering with addiction cannot afford or may have difficulty leaving home to undergo inpatient detox and residential treatment for an extended period. We now have the ability to privately, and conveniently treat our patients remotely anytime or any place; via telemedicine, utilizing the most up to date Medication Assisted Treatment and therapy service for our patients suffering with SUD. In most cases, patients can be safely treated at home for detox and behavioral healthcare services.

iRecoveryUSA is a JACHO accredited, 100% virtual telehealth company providing medication assisted treatment services for substance use disorder, as well as mental health counselling services for co-occurring mental health issues. Our mission is to provide lifesaving medications and MH services to the historically underserved patients receiving Medicare and Medicaid benefits. Treatment is convenient, confidential, destigmatized, and affordable. No need to leave home, work, or family responsibilities.

Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?

Treating patients with the disease of addiction is a difficult task to accomplish solo. It is imperative that you have a qualified team of professional, caring and non-judgmental providers as well as therapists to help facilitate compliance with treatment and to make adjustments to the treatment plan, jointly as needed.

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start?

I decided to fund iRecoveryUSA using my own personal funds to prove that the concept was financially and therapeutically viable. I will however seek additional funding from alternative sources upon expansion of our company out of the State of Florida.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.irecoveryusa.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/irecoveryusa
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IRecoveryUSA/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/irecovery-usa

Image Credits
NA