Maine Drug Rehab and Alcohol Rehabilitation Treatment Centers and Programs
The quiet and rugged state of Maine, located directly on the New England Pipeline for drug smuggling out of Canada, struggles with drug problems stemming from such easy availability of illicit substances. It ranks among the top ten of all states for the following indicators:
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Issues At-A-Glance, Maine
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), December 2008
The lack of perceived risk in using marijuana or alcohol is a direct contributor to high rates of admission to drug and alcohol centers in Maine. However, these are not the only risks to Maine residents. An April 2009 report shows that “among adults, 14% of young adults ages 18-25 have used pain relievers for non-medical purposes within the past year, compared to only 3% of adults age 26 and older.” The number of treatment admissions related to opiate abuse (excluding heroin and morphine) leaped by 63% since the first half of 2005, led by Oxycontin, accounting for 24% of all drug and alcohol treatment admissions in 2007, nearly three times as many as for marijuana.
This alarming rise in diversion of pharmaceuticals to recreational abuse in Maine contributes in large measure to the fact that drug dependence in Maine is well over national averages. This seeming epidemic crosses all age and demographic lines and can strike from any medicine cabinet in Maine.
To combat the problem, the number of drug and alcohol treatment facilities in Maine increased in the four-year span between 2002 and 2006, to 191. Nearly half are private for-profit treatment centers, matching an equal number (90) of private nonprofit facilities. The rest are publicly owned and managed. Residents seeking treatment for drug abuse in Maine rehab centers thus have a wide choice of programs and facilities, but should be aware that not all treatment programs are the same, nor are the services offered by the various facilities. Most administer services on an outpatient basis, which may not be appropriate for all patients. Longtime drug and alcohol abusers usually have serious medical conditions accompanying the addiction, which often require inpatient care. Short and long-term residential programs are offered by 27 rehabilitation centers in Maine; other detox centers or hospitals may offer specific services on an inpatient basis.
Opiate abuse is particularly difficult to treat. Many patients enter a drug treatment center in Maine hoping for a methadone or buprenorphine program, which uses these less destructive opioids to mitigate the effects of heroin and other opiates. However, only seven Maine rehabilitation centers offered such programs in 2006, and only 71 physicians were certified to administer buprenorphine. Prospective patients looking for these sorts of programs may have to widen the search outside their local Maine community.
With 33% of Maine’s young adults engaging in binge drinking and 68% of all people admitted to drug and alcohol treatment in Maine for marijuana abuse being under the age of 29, it is clear that Maine’s youth population is at high risk. Parents especially should educate themselves on the signs of substance abuse and seek help for their children as early as possible.
- Auburn
- Scarborough
- Augusta
- Waterville
- Bangor
- Holden
- Bar Harbor
- Bath
- Belfast
- Portland
- Biddeford
- Lewiston
- Brunswick
- Freeport
- Calais
- Lubec
- Camden
- Caribou
- South Thomaston
- Dexter
- Dover Foxcroft
- Eastport
- Ellsworth
- Machias
- Farmington
- Fort Kent
- Fryeburg
- Greenville
- Hartland
- Bar Mills
- Houlton
- Presque Isle
- Kennebunk
- Kittery
- Limerick
- Limestone
- Lisbon Falls
- Madawaska
- Medway
- Mexico
- Norway
- Old Orchard Beach
- Old Town
- Oxford
- Palermo
- Perry
- Princeton
- Rockland
- Rockport
- Rumford
- Saco
- Sidney
- Skowhegan
- South Paris
- South Portland
- Southwest Harbor
- Springvale
- Starks
- Stow
- Swanville
- Waterboro
- Westbrook
- Windham
- York
The quiet and rugged state of Maine, located directly on the New England Pipeline for drug smuggling out of Canada, struggles with drug problems stemming from such easy availability of illicit substances. It ranks among the top ten of all states for the following indicators:
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Issues At-A-Glance, Maine
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), December 2008
The lack of perceived risk in using marijuana or alcohol is a direct contributor to high rates of admission to drug and alcohol centers in Maine. However, these are not the only risks to Maine residents. An April 2009 report shows that “among adults, 14% of young adults ages 18-25 have used pain relievers for non-medical purposes within the past year, compared to only 3% of adults age 26 and older.” The number of treatment admissions related to opiate abuse (excluding heroin and morphine) leaped by 63% since the first half of 2005, led by Oxycontin, accounting for 24% of all drug and alcohol treatment admissions in 2007, nearly three times as many as for marijuana.
This alarming rise in diversion of pharmaceuticals to recreational abuse in Maine contributes in large measure to the fact that drug dependence in Maine is well over national averages. This seeming epidemic crosses all age and demographic lines and can strike from any medicine cabinet in Maine.
To combat the problem, the number of drug and alcohol treatment facilities in Maine increased in the four-year span between 2002 and 2006, to 191. Nearly half are private for-profit treatment centers, matching an equal number (90) of private nonprofit facilities. The rest are publicly owned and managed. Residents seeking treatment for drug abuse in Maine rehab centers thus have a wide choice of programs and facilities, but should be aware that not all treatment programs are the same, nor are the services offered by the various facilities. Most administer services on an outpatient basis, which may not be appropriate for all patients. Longtime drug and alcohol abusers usually have serious medical conditions accompanying the addiction, which often require inpatient care. Short and long-term residential programs are offered by 27 rehabilitation centers in Maine; other detox centers or hospitals may offer specific services on an inpatient basis.
Opiate abuse is particularly difficult to treat. Many patients enter a drug treatment center in Maine hoping for a methadone or buprenorphine program, which uses these less destructive opioids to mitigate the effects of heroin and other opiates. However, only seven Maine rehabilitation centers offered such programs in 2006, and only 71 physicians were certified to administer buprenorphine. Prospective patients looking for these sorts of programs may have to widen the search outside their local Maine community.
With 33% of Maine’s young adults engaging in binge drinking and 68% of all people admitted to drug and alcohol treatment in Maine for marijuana abuse being under the age of 29, it is clear that Maine’s youth population is at high risk. Parents especially should educate themselves on the signs of substance abuse and seek help for their children as early as possible.
- Auburn
- Scarborough
- Augusta
- Waterville
- Bangor
- Holden
- Bar Harbor
- Bath
- Belfast
- Portland
- Biddeford
- Lewiston
- Brunswick
- Freeport
- Calais
- Lubec
- Camden
- Caribou
- South Thomaston
- Dexter
- Dover Foxcroft
- Eastport
- Ellsworth
- Machias
- Farmington
- Fort Kent
- Fryeburg
- Greenville
- Hartland
- Bar Mills
- Houlton
- Presque Isle
- Kennebunk
- Kittery
- Limerick
- Limestone
- Lisbon Falls
- Madawaska
- Medway
- Mexico
- Norway
- Old Orchard Beach
- Old Town
- Oxford
- Palermo
- Perry
- Princeton
- Rockland
- Rockport
- Rumford
- Saco
- Sidney
- Skowhegan
- South Paris
- South Portland
- Southwest Harbor
- Springvale
- Starks
- Stow
- Swanville
- Waterboro
- Westbrook
- Windham
- York
