Tag Archives: addiction treatment centers

What if Drug Rehab was Free? (And What if it Cost Fifty Grand?)

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What if drug rehab was free?

I happen to work in a treatment center so I get to see clients come and go and I witness various degrees of success with these people.

It is amazing how different the funding can be for different clients.  Some people come to the same treatment center, over and over again, without spending a dime of their own money–simply from taxpayer dollars.  Others are not eligible for this, don’t have insurance, and end up having to pay cold hard cash if they want to go to treatment….and of course this runs into the thousands for only a few days worth of detox, and even more if they stay for a week or two.

So I’m just sort of wondering…what does the cost of treatment have to do with the outcomes?

My friend Keith over at drug addiction recovery would probably argue that free treatment is not going to be as beneficial as if someone pays good money for it.  This will be especially true if the person actually worked to produce the money that they are using to go to treatment with.  I believe Keith would argue this based on the fact that he is a recovery coach and receives money from clients to help them realize their goals in life.  He also sponsors people in the fellowship for free and notices a difference between when someone is paying him and when someone is not.

Now traditional 12 step meetings are free and many have found their solution in them, so I am not knocking the “free model.”  But if someone is using rehab like a revolving door then they are not likely to get much benefit out of it.

On the other hand, those who pay exhorbitant prices for luxury treatment centers are probably under the assumption that they can buy their sobriety–or their hopeless family members are under that illusion.  Unfortunately this is not the case.  Relapse rates are miserable regardless of what the treatment costs. Free drug rehab is just as uninspiring as the overpriced luxury treatment center.

The key issue here is if the cost changes the motivation of the individual.  I believe that it can if they actually paid their own way through hard work and earned wages.  But if they are riding on someone else’s dollar then there is no added incentive there to make a more sincere attempt at recovery.

Success Rates in AA and Treatment Centers

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The success rates in AA and in Treatment centers have never been anything to write home about, but what about the alternatives?

There are a number of addiction treatment centers out there that are based on a completely different model of recovery.  For example, Narconon drug abuse treatment centers do not rely on a 12 step program, nor do some of the elite treatment centers found in California.

These “alternative” treatment centers tend to be based on counseling and therapy instead of the 12 step approach of AA.  But are they any more or less effective?

One prominent alternative therapy at Narconon claims to have a 76 percent success rate with their clients, certainly much higher than the AA success rate usually thrown around of about 3 to 10 percent.  Now I do not have any direct experience with Narconon or their recovery program, but authoritative sources caution heavily against these success claims that are made in the online world, specifically because it is usually the desperate family members of the addict who are doing research and hoping to find a “magic bullet” that will “cure” their afflicted one.

Another interesting twist to the situation is this: the 12 step model tends to dominate the industry, while the handful of alternatives only make up a very small percentage.  Because of this, the alternative therapies almost always cost prohibitively more than a local 12-step based alternative.  In other words, almost anyone can go to a “regular, 12-step treatment center” for cheaper than they could attend one of these alternative therapies.  This says nothing about the potential effectiveness of either 12 step models or the alternatives, only that the costs of the alternatives will almost always be higher, and therefore those treatment centers will likely proclaim themselves to have a higher success rate because of their exclusive approach.

The bottom line for most people is that success rates are lousy across the board, regardless of what type of treatment is being used.  There is still hope though, and almost any addict or alcoholic can potentially find meaningful and lasting sobriety at almost any treatment center–provided that they have truly surrendered and are willing to fully commit to their program.

There is no magic program.  There is only surrender and conviction.  You have to want it.  Only then will you claim success.