A new poll released this month suggests that Americans on both sides of the aisle support including addiction treatment in health care reforms. Furthermore, a great majority of Americans polled are willing to pay to make treatment options more affordable and accessible.
The poll, sponsored by the Open Society Institute for Closing the Addiction Treatment Gap initiative who advocates accessible addiction treatment options, found that Republicans, Democrats and Independents alike agree that treatment is an effective, ongoing process. Furthermore, the poll shows that:
- 77% of Americans support including addiction treatment in health care reform
- 69% support paying $2 more a month in health insurance premiums in order to make addiction treatment more affordable, and thus accessible
- 47% report having an inadequate number of affordable, quality treatment options in their community
- 49% reported that they could not afford the costs of treatment if they or a family member required help
Of those polled who knew or knows someone who has looked for addiction treatment, 46% reported difficulty finding affordable, quality services.
According to Closing the Addiction Treatment Gap’s statistics, 23 million Americans are currently struggling with alcohol or drug addiction. They estimate that only one in ten receive addiction treatment, largely due to the high costs and lack of insurance coverage.