PAT KENNEDY: I WAS OXY JUNKIE

Rep. Patrick Kennedy said yesterday he sought treatment for an
addiction to the painkiller OxyContin months before wrecking his car
outside the U.S. Capitol last year.

The Rhode Island Democrat told NBC's "Today" show that he felt great
in his recovery from substance abuse and was determined not to let
the disease "take its toll on me ever again."

Kennedy checked into the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota last May after the
car crash, saying at the time that he had also been at the clinic the
previous Christmas. He said only that he was addicted to "pain
medication" and did not name OxyContin.

Kennedy has been open about his struggles with mental illness,
including bipolar disorder and addictions to alcohol and other
substances. He said it didn't matter what substance he was addicted to.

"Even though I had detoxified from pain medication, one thing you
learn as an addict is you can substitute anything for your main
addiction," Kennedy said.

Kennedy said yesterday that his public profile helped him after he
checked into rehab because it has prompted other recovering
alcoholics and addicts to approach him. Still, he acknowledged being
hesitant to admit his addictions publicly because he said he felt ashamed.

"I am also feeling that same sense of stigma in my life, and that's
why I can empathize with millions of Americans who feel that sense of
shame at calling themselves addicts and alcoholics," Kennedy said.

Kennedy appeared with Rep. Jim Ramstad to promote legislation that
requires equal health-insurance coverage for mental and physical
illnesses. Ramstad, a Minnesota Republican, is a recovering alcoholic
and is Kennedy's sponsor in recovery.

After spending a month at the Mayo Clinic, Kennedy pleaded guilty to
driving under the influence of prescription drugs and was re-elected
to a seventh term in November.