Addiction Research & Therapy

Health care costs associated with individuals who abuse drugs and alcohol are higher than those for the general populations. Of the $216 billion dollars paid by federal and state government for health care costs for persons abusing alcohol, drug and tobacco 98% represents medical consequences of substance abuse and only 2% represents direct spending for substance abuse treatment (National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University, 2009). Chronic drug users utilize 30% more emergency healthcare services than the general population (McGeary & French 2000). Opiate users often receive care in emergency rooms, one of the most expensive points of entry to the healthcare system (Shanahan, Beers, Alford, Brigandi, & Samet, 2010). Th e risks of inpatient care and ER visits in bipolar patients are associated with key co-morbidities including substance abuse (Guo, Keck, Li, Jang and Kelton, 2008). Individuals who abuse drugs and alcohol have higher rates of mental and physical illnesses and use more expensive forms of acute care Clark, O’Connell and Samnaliev, 2010).

Methods: This study examined the pre and post treatment health care utilization patters of individuals receiving private, residential substance abuse and mental health treatment using questions from the Treatment Service Review (McLellan, Alterman, Cacciloa, Metzger and O’Brien, 1992). Patients reported hospital admissions and emergency room visit frequency for medical, mental health and substance abuse issues at intake and again at six and twelve months post discharge. Costs of ER visits and overnight stays were estimated (CDC, 2012; Oh, 2012) and savings relative to pretreatment were calculated.

Results: Greater than 65% of the population responded to the survey and signifi cant savings were noted for the entire responding population including patients who reported relapse.

Conclusions: Attending treatment to address substance abuse and mental health issues can play a signifi cant role in reducing the use of expensive acute care such as ER visits as well as reduce the number of overnight stays in hospitals.