Nashville, Tenn. (September 16, 2010)—Nearly 90 percent of people needing treatment for drug addiction don’t get the help they need, according to a new nationwide study released today by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), 9.3 percent of Americans aged 12 or older needed specialized treatment for a substance abuse problem in 2009, but only 2.6 million (or roughly 11.2 percent of them) received it. In addition, overall use of illegal drugs rose by 9 percent from 2008 to 2009, mostly due to increased abuse of prescription drugs, methamphetamine and ecstasy.
“These results are a wake-up call to the nation,” said SAMHSA Administrator Pamela S. Hyde, J.D. “Our strategies of the past appear to have stalled out with generation ‘next.’”
In 2009 more than 20 million Americans were classified as “needing substance use treatment but not receiving treatment at a specialty facility.” But surprisingly, nearly 95 percent of these people reported that they did not perceive a need for treatment for their illicit drug or alcohol use problem.
“These findings suggest an alarming public health crisis,” said Robert S. Waggener, CEO of Foundations Recovery Network, a leading provider of evidence-based addiction treatment services based here in Nashville. “There is an acute need for more education about the effectiveness of addiction treatment and the hope for recovery.”
Participants in the study reported that the main reasons they did not seek treatment for their illegal drug and alcohol use problems were:
· Not ready to stop using (39.8 percent),
· No health coverage and could not afford cost (33.7 percent),
· Possible negative effect on job (12.4 percent),
· Concern that receiving treatment might cause neighbors/community to have negative opinion (12.0 percent)
· Could handle the problem without treatment (10.9 percent)
· Not knowing where to go for treatment (10.7 percent)
“As addiction treatment professionals, we have been working for decades to overcome the public stigma of drug addiction,” Waggener said. “Our society is slowly beginning to acknowledge the fact that addiction is a disease that deserves effective treatment. We will continue to spread the message that treatment works, and further the mission of removing barriers that prevent people from experiencing healing and recovery.”
To learn more about evidence-based treatment for substance use disorders, visit www.FoundationsRecoveryNetwork.com <http://www.FoundationsRecoveryNetwork.com> .
To read the full text of the 2009 National Survey on Drug Use and Health from the US government’s Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, visit http://oas.samhsa.gov/nsduhLatest.htm <http://oas.samhsa.gov/nsduhLatest.htm> .
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Foundations Recovery Network provides evidence-based treatment for adult men and women with co-occurring addiction and mental health disorders. We operate The Canyon in Malibu, California; Michael’s House in Palm Springs, California; La Paloma in Memphis, Tennessee; and Foundations Outpatient Clinic in Atlanta, Georgia. As a dedicated provider of evidence-based behavioral health treatment, Foundations Recovery Network has been recognized as the “gold standard” in the industry and ranked in the top 5 percent in the nation by the prestigious Dartmouth Psychiatric Research Center. Our facilities are CARF-accredited and utilize motivational enhancement therapy to engage patients in creating a personal recovery plan.
Foundations Recovery Network’s healing approach restores dignity, renews hope and empowers our patients to achieve lasting recovery.
Media Inquiries Contact: Kelly Bainbridge
kelly.bainbridge@frnmail.com <mailto:kelly.bainbridge@frnmail.com>
615.371.5729
