Estimating the Number of Substance Use Disorder Recovery Homes in the United States
Leonard A. Jason, Elzbieta Wiedbusch, Ted J. Bobak, David B Taullahu
Abstract
Recovery homes serve as an important resource for individuals in dealing with substance use disorders (SUD). Access to these community-based supports is critical for many individuals exiting inpatient SUD treatment facilities and criminal justice settings. Unfortunately, basic information about this large system of recovery homes is unavailable, such as the total number of recovery homes in the United States. Although existing databases are not comprehensive, we used available ones to tabulate the recovery homes in the United States and supplemented this with phone interviews from state SUD treatment experts. Based on this research, we estimate there are about 17,900 recovery homes in the United States, and about 1.2% of individuals with SUDs use recovery homes each year. There is a need to develop an accessible directory of recovery homes that provides their location, as well as available openings, house gender, and offered services.