Private health insurance plans can help families to cover the high costs of drug and alcohol rehabilitation treatment programs. Residential rehab centers usually run in the tens of thousands of dollars for the recommended length of stay to be successful in maintaining long-term addiction recovery, which is ninety days.

Unfortunately, while most insurance plans will help pay for substance abuse treatment, they will often only cover a small portion of this cost. Because of that fact, many addicts end up having to leave the facility after only a couple of weeks, and they quickly relapse because they weren’t able to get enough intensive help. Some insurance may provide benefits for the entire cost, or they will cover outpatient treatment programs instead.It’s very important to check with your own insurance company and see what coverage benefits you have, because they vary widely between different plans. Even if you think you won’t qualify to have part of a drug and alcohol rehab program paid for, you should go ahead and check anyway because you just might be surprised. The other place you will need to check with is treatment centers, because not all of them accept payment from private health insurance companies. If they do, ask them to calculate your total out-of-pocket expenses after insurance has paid. There are sometimes hidden costs that your company may not tell you about when they quote a total.

Individuals who can’t afford private health insurance can also check out Medicaid. This is medical coverage that is provided for citizens by state government agencies. You can contact your local Health and Human Services Department or similar government agency to get more information about it. This service is usually provided only to low income individuals, but the guidelines and regulations vary widely depending on which state you live in. It often covers addiction treatment programs.