The Terre Haute Chamber of Commerce would like to welcome new member, Groups Recover Together.
On September 20th, there will be a ribbon cutting ceremony and open house for the brand new Groups opiate treatment center in Terre Haute, In. Duke Bennett, David Haynes, and other stakeholders in the community will be attendance. The new low-cost clinic combines AA-style group therapy with medication assisted treatment in a community-based model that’s had impressive outcomes to date—reducing drug dependence and empowering people to resume their work and family commitments.
We’re a mission-driven organization that’s working to address the shortage of affordable care options for people suffering from addiction. Our work—currently in [20] other towns in Indiana and also have locations in 6 other states —has been featured in NPR and other national outlets, but this is the first time these kind of services will be available to people suffering addiction in Terre Haute and surrounding areas. Our aim is to get the word out so that some of the many people on waiting lists for treatment learn about this option and so that others understand the promise of this low-cost model.
Additional Facts
- There’s still a critical shortage of treatment opportunities for people who recognize the need. Most public treatment centers have long waiting lists and are sometimes inaccessible for rural residents who need daily visits for methadone maintenance. Private options are often prohibitively expensive.
- Groups is a new organization that’s working to make opiate treatment accessible by combining weekly group therapy (much like Alcoholics Anonymous) with an effective prescription medical treatment known as Suboxone. The aim is to make treatment more affordable and convenient (patients only need to attend once a week and need only limited private interaction with a physician) as well as more effective (backers say the community support aspect helps to hold patients accountable to each other).
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Medication replacement therapy is widely-recognized as the gold standard for treating opiate addiction. It reduces annual mortality by a third, and cuts risks of IV-related infections, among other benefits. But many physicians have avoided offering these treatments due to poor reimbursement and other factors.
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The opening of the new Groups clinic in Terre Haute is significant because it will make treatments like Suboxone more accessible for to those who can benefit from it. The program combines these treatments with group therapy programs that build social support and make patients more accountable for achieving recovery goals.
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Groups is also seeking to address the geographic mismatch in opiate addiction treatment. Whereas the modern challenge of opiate addiction is overwhelming centered in suburban and rural areas, treatment centers are largely located in urban centers. For decades, addiction challenges were largely centered in cities and, still to this day, methadone clinics cannot generally operate in small towns with relatively few patients.
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The Groups model—medication assisted treatment and group therapy—can succeed in areas with lower population densities than big cities. Clinics can operate effectively with fewer patients, who receive treatment weekly rather than daily.
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Cost is 65 per week for self pay members. This includes all services offered at the facility. We are currently accepting Aetna and Optum insurance in Indiana and are in negotiations with medicaid at this time.
