When you come to the end of a rehabilitation program, your funds may be drained from not working, and your insurance company has likely payed for all of the treatment it’s going to pay for. Perhaps you can get your insurer to cover outpatient treatment, but any other resources you may need – such as sober living accommodations – will probably be out of pocket.
So, what are your options if returning home is untenable at this time and you need to stay a few more weeks in a drug- and alcohol-free environment? A recovery home is the ideal situation you’re looking for, but paying for it won’t be easy.
Unless you have a few thousand dollars lying around after completing rehab, here are some tips for helping you pay for a recovery home stay as you continue to become accustomed to sobriety:
Will Insurance Cover Sober Living? Try to Use Your Insurance Plan
Just because the chances aren’t great that your insurance plan will cover a recovery home stay doesn’t mean you should avoid looking into it. There are so many insurance companies and unique plans out there that it’s hard to say with 100 percent certainty that you will or will not be covered.
Perhaps you have a higher-end policy that might cover this kind of expense, or if you’ve had a doctor deem sober living as medically necessary, then there’s a higher chance your insurer may cover it. Another possibility is you’ve had the foresight to add on certain options to your insurance plan, which may now cover extended care and accommodations for drug addiction.
You can’t know for sure unless you call up your insurance company directly and ask them if sober living is specifically covered, or what you have to do to get it covered. If you employer provides your insurance, you may be able to get your answers through a human resources representative at your workplace.
The moral of the story is: Don’t rule it out until you’ve asked.
Explore the Recovery Home’s Payment Options
If you’re interested in a specific recovery home, contact them to explore their payment options. They may be able to find a solution that works with your budget. They may offer financing so that you don’t have to put down the money all at once. Perhaps they will also offer a grace period before you start having to pay the loan back.
Some recovery homes are able to offer scholarships and financial aid in order to offset some of your costs. At ECHO Recovery, we take monetary and household good donations in order to help clients afford their fees and to so we can keep our recovery homes stocked with everyday communal items.
The takeaway here is to communicate with your desired recovery home and explore their payment plans before ruling out sober living completely.
Work While You Reside at the Recovery Home
Many recovery homes require you to work at least a part-time job while you enjoy their accommodations, so this can factor in to how you pay for their fees. Although the job you find (or resume) likely won’t cover the entire cost of recovery home living, it will certainly help. It may also factor into the loan terms they offer you if you approach them about a payment plan.
Seek a Private Loan
By no means are you relegated to the recovery home when it comes to seeking a loan. You can approach a bank or another reputable lender in order to seek one of the following types of loans:
- Personal
- Medical
- Hardship
In fact, you may want to do this and secure your terms and then approach a recovery home and ask about their payment plans. This way, you can choose the best terms possible for your budget, and you won’t regret not exploring more payment options.
Please note that while you can take out a loan for sober living and possibly qualify for a scholarship from the recovery home itself, there are no federal grants available for “drug-free supportive housing” at this time, according to the federal Center for Substance Abuse Treatment.
Look into Nonprofit Scholarships and Sponsorships
There may be nonprofit organizations either in your hometown or located near your desired recovery home that can offer you financial assistance for sober living. It’s doubtful they will be able or willing to cover the entire cost, but any aid they can offer will help.
The recovery facility you look into may bring up this option if you talk to them about payment plans; they may work with local nonprofits in order to help their clients afford the accommodations. Otherwise, do an independent search online for a charity or nonprofit that may offer financial aid for your sober living stay.
Other Potential Options to Pay for Sober Living
And, if all else fails, or if there’s a certain dollar amount that you’re having trouble covering, there a few last-ditch efforts you can try, such as:
- Ask a friend, family member or close neighbor if they would be willing to lend you the money until you can pay them back.
- Sell off personal property or assets that can help you cover the sober living costs.
- Dip further into your checking account or into your personal saving account, if you haven’t done so already. Be sure to leave enough to live off when you return home.
We understand that you would have to set aside some pride and personal comfort in doing any one of these three things, but consider what’s at stake here: your life and your health. If you finish rehab before you’re really ready and then you relapse, most of the work you did and most of what you’ve spent will have been for not. We say “most” because sometimes you can get right back on track quickly.
Think of the long-term implications of not following through with your recovery, and also think of the success you could find if you maintain sobriety for years on end. Look at rehab and sober living as an investment into your future.
Recovery Housing on the East Coast
ECHO Recovery can help you with a stable place to stay as you pursue outpatient addiction treatment or if you simply want more time in a sober environment before returning home. Our recovery homes emphasize life skills and encourage employment in addition to any treatment you’re receiving and support groups in which you’re participating.
Through various generous donations, we’re able to offer financial aid to many of our clients, as well. Find out more about the services we can provide to support you or your loved one’s walk toward recovery by clicking below.
Explore Our Recovery Housing Services
Experienced Chief Executive Addiction Recovery and Mental Health Professional
Business professional in the Addiction Recovery and Mental Health industry for the past 26 years. Caring, compassionate and strongly motivated to make a difference in the organizations I am affiliated with and welfare of the population we serve. Currently focused on advocating, educating and developing projects leveraging evidence based, real time technology to support individuals in recovery.
