| Drug and Alcohol Rehab - How
to Pay for it? One of the biggest
roadblocks to drug rehab for many people is
the ability to pay for treatment. You may
think that you will have to pay the going
rate out of pocket, and at some addiction
treatment facilities this is true, however,
it is not always true, and even where you
have to pay out of pocket there may still be
some options that would make going to a
particular treatment center possible.
At this point you may be thinking, well
how much does rehab cost anyway? The truth
is that it varies quite a lot. Not
surprisingly addicting treatment, and
particularly residential treatment, can be
an expensive proposition. Drug rehab |
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centers have a lot of overhead from feeding and
sheltering clients to paying for qualified staff. When
it comes to staff it is probably true that the higher
the staff patient ratio is the more clients are going to
get from treatment because they will get more
individualized attention. In addition the treatment
center may have its own medical staff including
physicians and nurses or at the very least have these
individuals available on a consultation basis.
Then too, the nicer the facility the more it is going to
cost. Some facilities provide such facilities as ropes
courses, swimming pools, saunas and even helicopter
rides. None of which is essential for treatment, but
all could be nice perks if you are looking for them.
Just expect that the cost of such programs will rise
dramatically. All of that said, expect to pay anywhere
from $125.00 a day to a couple of thousand per day for
inpatient treatment. Now times that by your length of
stay, a minimum of 30 days and you have your cost of
treatment.
If you are able to pay this cost out of pocket, you
may want to look at our
questions to ask treatment centers or go directly
to the alcohol
rehab locator. If that isn't you lets talk about
your options for paying for treatment.
| If you have health insurance,
check and see if they pay for treatment and how
much they pay. Many states are starting to
require that health insurers cover costs like
treatment, so even if you didn't have it
initially you may now be covered and it is worth
checking. Also check the coverage. If there is
a limited time span or amount consider how you
will use that. Perhaps it is enough for 30 days
inpatient but you could get 90 days out of
outpatient.
Research has shown that less than 90 days
tends to be ineffective for treating addiction
even if it is on an outpatient basis. |
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So, you don't have insurance. That is true for a lot
of people, and it doesn't mean you can't get treatment.
Some treatment centers offer a sliding fee basis, it
can't hurt to ask and it may bring the cost of treatment
from being impossible to possible. Some states pay for
treatment centers to take patients. Each state that
does this can do it a little differently so one state
may designate its treatment dollars for pregnant women
or women with small children. Another state may
partition out its funds to local jurisdictions who may
then make it available to anyone on a first come first
served basis. It is worth checking with the state
agency that makes this decision and we have provided a
list of those
state agencies and their phone numbers.
The state wont pay for your alcohol rehab, so what
now? Do you gamble when you drink? Some states like
Oregon provide free gambling addiction treatment for
gambling addicts and at the same time they provide
treatment for alcoholism.
Nope, not a gambler. Okay, are you eligible for
veteran's benefits? The Veterans Administration offers
alcoholism treatment to its beneficiaries. So if you
have ever been in the armed services check with the VA.
It may be starting to look like you are going to have
to pay out of pocket and that may be the reality, but don't
let that stop you. Some people walk up to this
reality and use it as a convenient excuse not to get
treatment. Consider how much you habit is costing you
(you can use our
habit calculator at our sister site and just close
the window to return) now that you have a figure how
much would you save this year if you weren't using any
more? How far would that go to paying for treatment.
It is worth asking yourself what it is worth to you
to stop? And, "where do I see myself in 5 years if I
don't stop now?" For some people the answer to that
last question can be pretty scary so it may be worth a
lot to quit. If that is you consider your assets do you
own a car you could sell? A home you could take out a
second mortgage on? Do you have family who are sick and
tired of loaning you money just to watch you drink it,
but might be willing to pay it directly to the treatment
center.
Try taking a piece of paper and writing down all the
options, no matter how wild they seem, for paying for
treatment.
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