Located astride the New England Pipeline for drug smuggling from Canada, with a bustling seaport and a number of trendy college campuses, Massachusetts is also in the top ten of all states for rates of alcohol dependency and drug abuse. Drug dependence rates among young people under age 25 are among the highest in the country, well above the national average. Cocaine and heroin rank at the top of abused drugs, with MDMA (Ecstasy) haunting college campuses and raves attended by young people. The fact that teenagers in Massachusetts perceive smoking marijuana as a low-risk pastime undoubtedly contributes to the high rate of abuse.

The 312 drug and alcohol treatment centers in Massachusetts report that trends among admissions reflect the widening drug threats now seen in the Commonwealth. The spike in abuse of opiates other than heroin from 2000 onward indicated below clearly shows the increasing misuse of prescription drugs like Percocet and Oxycontin, which is the most heavily abused pharmaceutical drug in Massachusetts. Families who never considered themselves as candidates for an alcohol or drug rehabilitation program may find themselves unexpectedly facing a substance abuse problem that came out of their own medicine cabinet.

Massachusetts is fortunate in the number of public and private nonprofit and private for-profit drug and alcohol treatment and rehabilitation centers operating within its borders, and in the services they offer. Massachusetts rehab centers seem to have faced the reality of hard-core addictions resulting from the high incidence of cocaine and heroin abuse here. An unusually high number (41%) offer residential care, while a much lower percentage (66%) than in other states offer only outpatient care. Likewise, 58 facilities offer programs for opioid treatment.

A recent study in Maryland showed that, across the board, high percentages of abusers reported that their first exposure to alcohol or drugs was during adolescence. Massachusetts parents would do well, therefore, to study the chart below, which shows that well over half of all Massachusetts high school seniors have used marijuana, and a staggering 11% have tried cocaine. Of the 107,000 people admitted to Massachusetts drug and alcohol rehabilitation centers in 2007, 1600 were under 18. With street gangs and Mexican drug cartels continuing to push drugs onto Massachusetts streets, that number will only grow without close supervision and early intervention at the first sign of a problem.

While drug and alcohol treatment centers in Massachusetts are located across the state, families should carefully evaluate available options to understand the types and levels of services offered. About 67% of all Massachusetts rehab centers receive public funding and are therefore sharing a finite pool of financial resources granted by local, state, or federal agencies to help with prevention and treatment efforts. Funding, staffing, and approach to treatment will vary between rehab facilities; check that local or regional Massachusetts treatment centers have depth of experience with your particular problem as well as adequate staffing and facilities to accommodate the number of people seeking treatment. Seek help as soon as possible; early intervention is often the key to a good outcome.