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Mississippi Drug and Alcohol Use Statistics
- In 2019, 3,000 individuals (0.11% of the MS population) aged 12 and older had a heroin use disorder.1
- In the same year, approximately 96,000 individuals (3.9% of the MS population) aged 12 and older experienced prescription pain reliever misuse.1
- Approximately 2.4% (58,000 individuals) of the MS population aged 12 and older had an illicit drug use disorder.1
- In 2019, 4.4% (107,000) of individuals aged 12 and older had an alcohol use disorder.1
How Much Does Alcohol and Drug Rehab in Mississippi Cost?
The cost of rehab in Mississippi depends on the type of rehab you attend (such as inpatient vs. outpatient), the duration of your stay during treatment, and the treatments you receive while in rehab.
For example, receiving inpatient treatment after a medical detox for 60 days would be more expensive than receiving weekly outpatient therapy sessions for 30 days.
How to Find Low-Cost and Free Rehabs in Mississippi
If you find that the cost of drug and alcohol rehab centers in Mississippi prevents you from seeking treatment, you may have low-cost or even free rehab options.
One of the best options is a state-funded rehab. This type of facility receives financial grants from the government to provide alcohol and drug rehab at a low or no cost to those who can’t afford it.
State-funded drug and alcohol rehab centers are usually available to those with low income or no insurance. You may qualify for a state-funded rehab if you have a low income or no insurance.
To find a Mississippi state-funded alcohol and drug rehab, you can contact the Mississippi Department of Mental Health.
Do Medicare and Medicaid Cover Drug Rehab?
Both Medicare and Medicaid are required by law to cover drug and alcohol rehab. This is because the Affordable Care Act and the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act expanded coverage to substance use disorders. Both of these laws also mandated that health insurers pay for substance use disorder treatment in the same way that they would any other medical or surgical issue.
Does Private Insurance Cover Addiction Treatment?
Private insurance covers substance use and alcohol use disorder treatment, just like Medicaid and Medicare. Because of the ACA and the MHPAEA, it is illegal for your health insurer to say that they don’t cover substance use disorder treatment.
While your private insurance must cover alcohol and drug rehab, it is always best to contact your health insurer directly to find the extent of your coverage and make sure that you choose from a list of in-network providers.
Popular Alcohol and Drug Rehab Centers in Mississippi
Finding a drug or alcohol rehab that fits your needs may be challenging when you first decide to go to rehab. What alcohol rehab is best? Where is an alcohol rehab near me? Where can I find a drug rehab near me?
It is common to find yourself asking these questions and many more about the rehab process. Mississippi has several popular rehab facilities.
Alcohol Services Center
The Alcohol Services Center is a drug and alcohol rehab located in Jackson that offers treatment to men, women, veterans, and the LGBTQ+ community of all ages.
Treatments offered include outpatient rehab, aftercare support, Cognitive Behavior Therapy, Rational Behavior Therapy, and dual diagnosis treatment.
Amenities offered include a residential setting.
The Alcohol Services Center is licensed by the state of Mississippi and accredited by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSHA).
GV Sonny Montgomery VA Medical Center Kosciusko VA Clinic
The GV Sonny Montgomery VA Medical Center Kosciusko VA Clinic is a rehab located in Kosciusko that treats both men and women as well as veterans and members of the LBGTQ+ community.
Treatment options include dual diagnosis, outpatient rehab, and aftercare support.
Amenities offered include a residential and private setting.
The GV Sonny Montgomery VA Medical Center Kosciusko VA Clinic is accredited by the Joint Commission.
Gulf Coast Mental Health Center Gulfport
The Gulf Coast Mental Health Center Gulfport is an alcohol and drug rehab located in Gulfport that offers treatment to men and women of all ages.
Treatments provided include outpatient rehab, aftercare support, and Cognitive Behavior Therapy.
Amenities include a residential and private setting.
The Gulf Coast Mental Health Center Gulfport is licensed by the state of Mississippi.
Vertava Health of Mississippi
The Vertava Health of Mississippi clinic is an alcohol and drug rehab in Southaven that offers treatment to young adult and adult men and women.
Treatments include detox, inpatient rehab, outpatient rehab, partial hospitalization services, sober living homes, Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and aftercare support.
Amenities include a basketball court, private transportation, a mediation room, hiking, a swimming pool, a recreation room, art activities, and a gym.
Vertava Health of Mississippi is accredited by the Joint Commission.
The Rehab Process: What to Expect
When starting rehab, you may not be sure what to expect, but don’t let that keep you from seeking the care you need. Addiction treatment isn’t like a quick visit to the dentist to take care of an aching tooth—it’s more like a regularly scheduled appointment with your therapist.
In fact, different individuals going through drug and alcohol rehab may start off at different stages of the process depending on their needs and what their rehab professionals recommend.
For example, you may not need to enter into medical detox if you only have a mild addiction, or you may start your treatment in outpatient rehab. If you have a severe addiction, then you may start rehab in medical detox before moving on to a more intensive program like inpatient rehab.
Receiving a Substance Abuse Assessment
When you first decide to seek out alcohol or drug rehab, you may contact your health care provider or the rehab facility of your choice to start the screening process. While you may not need a referral from your health care provider to enter into rehab, it is best to keep in contact with your provider.
After contacting your rehab of choice or your doctor, you will then go through a screening process using the Screening to Brief Intervention (S2BI) or Brief Screener for Alcohol, Tobacco, and other Drugs (BSTAD) or another tool used to determine the severity of your disorder and the best course of treatment.2
After completing the screener, your rehab professional will use the findings to determine what type of treatment will work best for your needs, such as whether or not you will benefit from medical detox if inpatient rehab is appropriate for you. The types of therapies you should receive while in rehab to enhance your recovery journey.
Medical Detox
Medical detox is often the first step on your long-term recovery path. This treatment is used to help you manage distressing and potentially life-threatening symptoms that come from withdrawing from substances, either illegal or misused, like heroin, alcohol, or prescription pain relievers.
Medical detox helps you stay safe and comfortable during the withdrawal period, which can be overwhelming and potentially fatal if done on your own without medical assistance.
Medical detox is not a substitute for comprehensive rehab treatment but rather an important first step toward recovery. Medical detox manages your withdrawal symptoms, while comprehensive rehab, like therapy, addresses the underlying causes of substance misuse while giving you the tools to stay on the road to long-term recovery.
The purpose of medical rehab is to allow you to gain a substance-free state in which you are medically sturdy, safe, and ready to start the necessary work in rehab that will help you journey toward recovery.
Inpatient Drug Rehab in Mississippi
Regarding alcohol and drug rehab in Mississippi, an inpatient rehab is an option that your rehab health professionals may consider depending on your needs and the severity of your substance use disorder or alcohol misuse. Inpatient therapy is a type of treatment that requires you to spend the entirety of your rehab treatment in a residential facility.
This means that during the course of your treatment, you will have to live in the rehab facility. You will not be able to go to work or school, leave for the night to spend time with family, or sleep at home.
Therapies offered in inpatient rehab may include medical detox, group therapy, individual therapy, and therapies like Cognitive Behavior Therapy or Dialectical Behavior Therapy.
Inpatient rehab has many benefits. Some of these benefits include:3
- Medical detox care and support to withdraw from substances safely
- Support from rehab professionals and peers
- A complete focus on your recovery with no outside influences to distract you
- Round-the-clock access to care
- A nurturing substance and alcohol-free environment
- Longer treatment times, which have been linked to better outcomes
Step-Down Care
After you complete your inpatient rehab program, you or your professional rehab team may decide that it is best for you to enter into another rehab treatment like a partial hospitalization program, intensive care outpatient program, or standard outpatient rehab. Step-down care aims to help you continue on your path to recovery by improving and building upon the skills you learned during inpatient care in a structured environment.
A partial hospitalization program is a treatment model that allows you to receive comprehensive care while leaving the facility and returning home in the evenings. Instead of going to work or school, your day would be spent partaking in the therapies offered in your partial hospitalization program.
Partial hospitalization programs offer both individual and group therapy. The benefits of a partial hospitalization program include:
- A high level of support and intense therapy
- A semi-controlled day time environment to keep you motivated as you work towards recovery
- Support as you enter into a new phase of recovery
- Ability to return to your own home each night
If a partial hospitalization program isn’t right for you, your rehab professionals may suggest an intensive care outpatient program after completing inpatient rehab. An intensive care outpatient program is a treatment model that gives you intense therapy while also allowing you to return home each night. Intensive outpatient therapy offers at least nine hours of therapy a week in the forms of group counseling, individual counseling, drug and alcohol use monitoring, and medication management.
Benefits of an intensive outpatient program include:4
- A high level of support, 24/7 crisis support
- A nurturing environment
- An easier transition and discharge once you are ready to enter into aftercare support
While intensive outpatient rehab is beneficial, your rehab team may suggest standard outpatient therapy if your addiction is less severe. Standard outpatient therapy is a treatment model that gives you comprehensive therapy on a more flexible schedule. With outpatient therapy, you can usually go to work or school and also spend your nights in your own home. Outpatient therapy offers group therapy, individual therapy, and other therapies like Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT). Benefits of outpatient therapy include:
- A more flexible schedule,
- The ability to spend your nights in your own home
- A strong support system
- Lower cost than inpatient rehab
Although you may utilize all of these rehab options on your rehab journey, going through each treatment model isn’t necessary. You and your rehab professional may decide that outpatient therapy is best for you, especially if you have a mild addiction, a supportive environment conducive to recovery, and a strong support system.
Aftercare and Relapse Prevention
Staying on the road to recovery is a lifelong process. Completing addiction treatment is a major first step to long-term recovery but is it crucial to have a plan in place that helps you prevent a relapse. This is where aftercare support comes in to help.
With aftercare support, you can work together with your professional treatment team to create a plan that allows you to continue toward recovery while also taking your needs and desires into consideration.
Some aftercare options that are available include AA (Alcoholics Anonymous), NA (Narcotics Anonymous), Smart Recovery, sober living homes, and ongoing therapy, both individual and group. Sometimes, you may have a relapse or “slip” back into substance use or alcohol misuse.
This doesn’t mean that you are a failure or that you have failed rehab. It just may mean that you need some additional support, and returning to treatment may be a necessary way to get you back on the road to recovery.
What to Consider When Choosing the Right Mississippi Rehab for You
Choosing the right Mississippi alcohol rehab and drug rehab is an important first step on your road to recovery. When choosing the right rehab for you, you should consider the distance of the rehab facility from your place of residence, whether you would like to travel to your rehab location or stay closer to home, the cost of rehab, the amenities offered by the rehab facility, the population that the rehab facility focuses on working with, and the type of treatment options available.
For example, if you have been diagnosed with a mental health disorder and a substance use disorder, then you would want to enter a rehab that offers dual diagnosis treatments because substance use disorders and mental health disorders require different types of therapy.
You should also consider what types of treatment approaches you value. For example, you may wish to enter a rehab that offers meditation and art therapy or one that emphasizes a relationship with a higher power as a cornerstone to recovery.
Other factors that you should consider include whether you would like to choose a rehab that allows you to have visitors or excursions from the facility during the course of treatment. These factors can come into play when choosing the right rehab for you.
What to Look for in a Quality Treatment Program
You should consider many factors when looking for a quality rehab program. Some of these factors may be more important to you than others. Some of the qualities you should look for in an excellent alcohol and drug rehab include program accreditation, credentialed staff, a low staff-to-patient ratio, individualized treatments, financing options, aftercare support, and alumni programs.
Program Accreditation
Program accreditation is a process that rehab facilities go through to ensure you can trust them to provide high-quality services. The accreditation process usually involves a number of evaluations that the rehab facility must undergo set forth by an accrediting agency like the Joint Commission or the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Services. Program accreditation lets you know that your rehab program of choice has met the standards set forth by accreditation bodies and, therefore, is able to provide high-quality services.
An accredited drug and alcohol rehab is a sign of high quality that allows you to trust the rehab facility to provide excellent treatment.
Credentialing of Staff
Staff credentials show that your rehab team has had the proper training to give you the best care. A quality rehab facility will have certified staff since Mississippi doesn’t currently offer licensing for substance use disorder counseling.5
Staff certified in substance use and alcohol misuse disorders are also more understanding of your disorder and will be better equipped to give you the necessary tools, therapies, and treatment to get you on the road to long-term recovery.
Low Staff-to-Patient Ratio
A low staff-to-patient ratio allows you to get the individualized care that you need without feeling as if you are being neglected, ignored, or rushed in your rehab experience.
A high-quality drug and alcohol rehab understands that each individual has their own story. While one therapy may work best for you to keep you on the road to recovery, another person may need a different therapy entirely.
A low staff-to-patient ratio allows your rehab team to actually get to know you and your needs as an individual. You will also get to know and trust your team, which is crucial for the recovery process to continue.
A low staff-to-patient ratio also allows for more individualized care, which is a crucial component of a high-quality drug and alcohol rehab.
Utilizing Individualized Treatment Plans
Individual treatment plans are the cornerstone to helping you toward recovery. An excellent rehab knows this and uses individual treatment plans to get the help you understand better the reasons why you have a substance use or alcohol misuse disorder.
Individual treatment plans also allow for your rehab team to address your specific triggers and stresses so that you can develop and implement a plan to help you stay on the road to recovery.
Having the personalized tools that only come with individualized care can better help to prevent relapse, and exceptional alcohol and drug rehabs recognize this.
Financing Options
The cost of rehab can be a huge factor in preventing you from getting the treatment you need. High-quality alcohol and drug rehab will understand this and work with you to make sure that finances aren’t stopping you from journeying toward recovery.
An excellent drug and alcohol rehab will offer financing options so that you can afford the rehab you need. This means that a quality rehab will do its best to work with you to find a way to help you afford rehab.
Financing options that your rehab may offer could include payment plans, a sliding scale, medical loans, rehab scholarships, and in-clinic financing.
Aftercare Planning
A quality alcohol and drug rehab knows that the road to recovery doesn’t stop once your rehab program is over. This is why your rehab should have an aftercare planning process in place. Aftercare provides you the support needed to stay on the road to recovery, and a quality rehab will be able to offer you aftercare rehab options so that you continue on your path to long-term recovery.
A quality rehab may offer an aftercare plan that includes employment options, educational goals, a plan to prevent relapse, and continued support from both your rehab team and your peers.
Alumni Programs
Staying connected to your support system is important in your recovery journey. A quality rehab understands and appreciates the bonds and connections that you make with your peers as you go through rehab together.
An excellent rehab center will be able to offer you alumni programs that celebrate the milestones in your recovery journey as well as allow you stay in contact with those who journeyed with you like staff and other patients.
Alumni programs helps to strengthen your support system, which keeps you journeying toward long-term recovery, and an excellent rehab will be able to keep you connected with your support system.
Should I Travel to Mississippi for Alcohol and Drug Treatment?
When considering whether you should travel to rehab, you should consider whether or not you have the financial means to travel, if you have support system in place once you return, how being in a different environment will affect your substance and alcohol use, and whether or not Mississippi is where you would like to have your rehab experience.
While choosing to travel for rehab is a personal decision, if you do choose to travel to Mississippi for drug and alcohol rehab, you can choose from many high-quality options.
Regional Considerations in Mississippi: North vs. South and City vs. Rural
Mississippi is a vibrant and charming state with many different locations and environments for you to explore. Whether you find a bustling city or a quiet beach an important part of your recovery journey, you will find what you’re looking for in Mississippi.
If you are a history lover and find exploring history to be a part of your recovery, then consider cities like Vicksburg and Natchez, MS. Vicksburg houses the Vicksburg National Military Park, which shows off historical monuments while Natchez is famous for the Natchez Trace Pathway. The Natchez Trace Pathway runs through three different states and offers access to historical gems like the Meriwether Lewis Museum.
If music and the arts are more important to your recovery, then consider Meridian, MS, which houses the Riley Center also called the Grand Opera House where you can take in a show. You also wouldn’t want to miss a visit to Tupelo, MS, where you can visit the birthplace of Elvis Presley.
If you find that a day at the beach is more important to your recovery, then consider Biloxi, MS, to soak up the sand and enjoy the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
Drug and Alcohol Laws in Mississippi
Possessing and/or using illegal drugs in Mississippi is a crime. Mississippi has strict drug laws, and if you are found guilty of possessing, selling, and/or using illegal drugs, you can be sentenced to prison time and/or a hefty fine.
The length of your sentence depends on the amount and type of drug possessed.
In Mississippi operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol and drugs is considered a crime punishable by jail or prison time, fines, or both. You may also lose your driver’s license for up to 120 days.
With a first offense DUI, you can be sentenced to up to 48 hours in jail and a fine of up $1,000. Second offenses can require up to six months of community service and participation in an alcohol or drug rehab program.
Whereas most Mississippi laws are hard on illegal drugs and alcohol misuse, the Mississippi Medical Emergency Good Samaritan law is one that works to save the lives of those who may be experiencing a drug overdose. The law states that a person can call 911 to save the life of someone experiencing a drug overdose without fear of being prosecuted for drug use.
If you want more information about Mississippi alcohol and drug rehab centers, contact 800-926-9037 (
Who Answers?) to speak to an addiction treatment specialist.
Resources
- HHS Publication No. SMA–20–Baro–19–MS. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2020. Behavioral Health Barometer: Mississippi, Volume 6: Indicators as measured through the 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health and the National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services. Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
- Screening and Assessment Tools Chart | National Institute on Drug Abuse. National Institute on Drug Abuse.
- de Andrade, Dominique; Elphinston, Rachel A.; Quinn, Catherine; Allan, Julaine; Hides, Leanne. 2019. The effectiveness of residential treatment services for individuals with substance use disorders: A systematic review. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 201, 227-235.
- Center for Substance Abuse Treatment. Substance Abuse: Clinical Issues intensive Outpatient Treatment. Treatment Improvement Protocol (TIP) Series 47. 2006. DHHS Publication No. (SMA) 06-4182. Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
- US Department of Health and Human Services. 2019. Credentialing, Licensing, and Reimbursement of the SUD Workforce [Ebook] (p. viii).
