Clinical Editorial Review
Our editorial team evaluates every guide against ASAM Criteria, SAMHSA TIPs, CDC surveillance data, and peer-reviewed research. We publish the sources we used.
200+
Sources cited
21,500+
Verified facilities
Quarterly
Editorial review cycle
Primary sources referenced
Site last reviewed: April 2026
Methodology
Every article on this site moves through a 5-stage editorial process before publication. We document the process because, in a field where misinformation is widespread, the authority of a guide is the sum of the sources it rests on.
Staff editor writes the initial draft using a working outline derived from primary-source literature — SAMHSA TIPs, NIDA Research Reports, peer-reviewed journals, state regulatory filings.
Every factual claim cross-checked against a primary source. Claims without a verifiable primary citation are either softened ("many programs report…") or removed.
Treatment descriptions aligned with ASAM Criteria for levels of care, SAMHSA TIPs for specific interventions, DSM-5-TR for diagnostic terminology. Disagreements among clinical bodies are presented, not resolved.
Published under our institutional byline. No invented expert personas. When a named clinician contributes, their real credentials and a verifiable bio appear.
Guides covering regulatory or insurance topics reviewed at least annually. Every page displays its last-reviewed date. Material corrections are logged with a visible notice.
Clinical Framework
Where the field has consensus, we follow it. Where it does not, we say so.
Six-dimension assessment framework used by licensed addiction programs to match patients to the right level of care — from outpatient (Level 1) through medically managed intensive inpatient (Level 4).
Source: asam.org
Consensus clinical guidelines from the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. TIP 63 (Medications for Opioid Use Disorder) and TIP 45 (Detoxification) are particularly load-bearing for our coverage.
Source: samhsa.gov
The diagnostic criteria our Self-Assessment tool is built on — 11 criteria graded across four clusters, severity tiered as mild / moderate / severe.
Source: psychiatry.org
National Institute on Drug Abuse synthesis of evidence on treatment effectiveness, relapse rates, and emerging interventions. Refreshed as new research is published.
Source: nida.nih.gov
Editorial Library
The ASAM Criteria 4th edition updated the six-dimension framework used to match addiction patients to appropriate levels of care. This is what shifted and how it changes clinical practice.
Your insurer's medical-necessity criteria determine what addiction treatment they will authorize. Under the 2024 federal parity rule, those criteria must now be disclosed. Here is how to read them.
Directory
21,568+ licensed facilities sourced from the SAMHSA Behavioral Health Treatment Services Locator. Refreshed quarterly.
Insurance
Deductibles, network adequacy, appeal paths, and specific MAT formulary notes — reviewed against the 2024 federal parity rule.
Helpline
Free, confidential, 24/7. Answered by licensed staff at treatment-network partners — subject to 42 CFR Part 2 confidentiality. See our editorial policy for disclosure on helpline routing.