How to Pay For Addiction Treatment

While thinking about getting help for your substance use disorder and/or co-occurring mental health disorder, you might be worried about how to pay for addiction treatment. Research now shows that the cost of such treatment is one of the main reasons why so many people do not check into drug rehabs. However, it does not have to be so for you.

Understanding the Cost of Addiction Treatment

The cost of drug and alcohol rehabilitation services will vary widely based on the types and levels of care that you are going to need. Often, you will receive the highest form of care from an inpatient or residential drug rehab facility. However, it might end up costing you more than outpatient treatment. On the other hand, outpatient drug rehab might cost less than inpatient treatment but fail to provide you with adequate support to sustain your recovery.

To this end, it is essential that you find ways to afford the cost of addiction treatment. Some of the options that you can use include:

1. Private Insurance

Insurance is one of the best ways to pay for addiction treatment. Most healthcare plans will cover part or all of your drug rehab services. The best thing you can do is get in touch with your carrier to find out their benefit coverage.

Alternatively, you could contact the drug rehab center that you wish to attend and ask them to find out how much of your addiction treatment your insurance provider will cover. They can also inform you if they are in the provider network run by your carrier, the number of days that you will be covered for, and the services that would be available to you according to the specific plan you selected.

2. Public Insurance

The ACA - or the Affordable Health Care Act - has put in place two main public insurance schemes that you can use while looking for information on how to pay for addiction treatment.

These health benefits are sponsored by the federal and state governments. Through Medicaid and Medicare, you can now afford drug rehabilitation services if you fall within certain segments of the American population.

Further, these public insurance programs might allow you to check into certain rehabilitation facilities without having to worry about the cost of your addiction treatment. This is because the will provide you with affordable payment options for your recovery programs, as long as you meet certain eligibility requirements.

3. Financing and Private Funding

You might also be able to finance your addiction treatment services privately, especially if do not qualify for public insurance or you are uninsured. Alternatively, you can check into recovery centers that provide scholarships to further reduce your cost of treatment.

The other option would be to look for a drug rehab that offers financing plans. This way, you will be able to pay for your addiction treatment services according to the plan that the center created when you enrolled into its program.

On the other hand, if you have a 401(k) plan, an IRA, or savings, you may have to use some of this money to offset the cost of your addiction treatment. You could also take a home equity loan on your property to fund your recovery.

4. Crowdfunding and Fundraising

While struggling with an addiction, your family and friends can also help you pay for your recovery services. To help your case, you can suggest they make payments directly to your chosen drug rehab center so that they are not worried that you are diverting the funds.

On the other hand, you can raise money for your treatment using a crowdfunding website, such as GoFundMe. Many people have been able to take advantage of this untapped resource to get the funds that they need to take care of their health and wellness by checking into a drug rehab center.

5. Free Treatment

Finally, you can get treatment free of charge from some drug rehab centers that are run by local and state governments. Other facilities could also provide similar services for free because they are run by not-for-profit organizations like the Salvation Army.

The important thing to keep in mind while you are worrying about how to pay for addiction treatment is that you can always afford to do so. As long as you understand all your options and are ready to make it work, you should be able to find ways to offset the cost of your recovery services.

CITATIONS

https://www.cms.gov/outreach-and-education/medicare-learning-network-mln/mlnmattersarticles/downloads/se1604.pdf

https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/principles-drug-addiction-treatment-research-based-guide-third-edition/frequently-asked-questions/drug-addiction-treatment-worth-its-cost

https://www.gofundme.com/c/blog/raise-money-addiction-treatment

https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/10.1377/hlthaff.2018.0272

https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/pdf/10.1377/hlthaff.11.3.137

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK232166/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1071416/