
Across the board, Rhode Island ranks among the top of all states for substance abuse of every type. Its rates of admission for drug and alcohol treatment are double the national average. In part these distressing trends are due to the state’s location directly astride the drug routes between Canada and New York; in part they arise from an extremely low perception of risk among its population with regard to using marijuana and alcohol.

National Outcomes Measures, Ohio 2008
U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration
These high rates may not drop anytime soon. Among Rhode Island’s student population, 35% of all 12th graders are current marijuana users; almost 60% have tried it. Many national and state studies have shown that up to 70% of long-time drug addicts reported their first use in adolescence, usually in the form of alcohol or marijuana. The same studies show that children exposed to drugs and alcohol before age 14 have a much higher risk of developing dependence; among Rhode Island teens, 11% of 9th graders have tried marijuana before age 13.
Parents should not bet against someday needing to evaluate Rhode Island drug and alcohol treatment programs for their child.

In that regard, there were 57 drug and alcohol treatment and rehabilitation centers in Rhode Island in 2006, per the latest National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS). Nearly all are private for-profit or private nonprofit facilities. Because 70% of all Rhode Island rehab centers receive public funding of one kind or another (state, local, federal), as well as contracted their services to hospitals, most patients referred to alcohol and drug treatment programs in Rhode Island will receive care through one of these facilities. “Private” therefore is not the intimidating term some people perceive it to be as compared to “public” programs.
Even though so many treatment centers in Rhode Island receive public funds, their programs are not identical. The majority of patients, and the majority of rehab centers, operate on an outpatient basis. For severe addictions, or people wanting the peace and quiet of a recovery center atmosphere, a residential program is a better choice. Residents can chose from the sixteen Rhode Island rehab facilities that offer residential programs.
Twenty-four percent of all treatment admissions to Rhode Island drug and alcohol rehab centers in 2006 were for heroin abuse, second only to alcohol in admissions overall. Despite this, not every Rhode Island treatment center offers opioid programs such as methadone maintenance. Just 19 facilities offered such programs in 2006, and only 21 programs and 42 doctors were certified to use buprenorphine in opiate treatment, a drug which also blocks the worst effects of opiate withdrawal.
Most drug and alcohol treatment programs in Rhode Island follow the proven path toward positive outcomes, using a mixture of detoxification, counseling and behavior modification, and group support to instill an attitude of “sober for life” in recovering addicts. All prospective patients should evaluate their local options and choose the facility most suited to their particular addiction.