1. Duration of time
Both halfway houses and recovery houses offer a place for addicts to stay when they first come out of a treatment facility. A good halfway house will be willing to accommodate the newly recovering addict as long as it is needed. This can mean that you have to stay at a halfway house for anywhere from one week, all the way up to six months. A recovery house is also willing to accommodate the addict for as long as they need. However, it is typically much less than what a halfway house offers. Recovery houses will usually only stay with an addict for up to 3-6 months, depending on individual factors.
2. Amenities Provided
Both places are more than happy to accommodate addicts with basic necessities. However, halfway houses are known for having more amenities available that the recovering addict may need. Halfway houses will provide many things to help addicts maintain their sobriety, including but not limited to:
– Job placement assistance
– Transportation assistance
– Treatment for mental health disorders
– Counseling sessions
– Dental and medical care
– A place to learn how to cope with day-to-day life without drugs or alcohol.
Recovery houses in Fort Lauderdale also offer some of these amenities; they just typically don’t provide as much as a halfway house does. Recovery houses will usually cover things such as:
– Housing during the length of stay (whether it be 1 month or 3 months)
– Food – which is usually limited to “slop” or something very simple
– Addiction treatment for mental health issues.
3. Length of Stay
Halfway houses are known for having long stays. These stays can last anywhere from one week all the way up to six months, depending on individual factors. Recovery houses, on the other hand, typically only offer stays for 1 month to 3 months. Longer-term options are typically not an option offered by recovery houses.
4. Government aid
Halfway houses receive government funding. This typically provides an addict with more freedom when it comes to leaving the facility during their stay with them. Recovery houses do not always receive government funding, which is why they are usually limited in their stays compared to halfway houses. Financial aid is another reason that addiction treatment centers usually send addicts to halfway houses instead of recovery houses.
5. Involvement in Addiction Treatment
Halfway houses are more closely related to addiction treatment centers. This is because they will usually be the first stop for an addict on their way back into sobriety. Recovery houses can also be closely related to addiction treatment centers; however, they don’t always accept addicts right out of a treatment facility. Some may even send addicts back to a full-blown addiction treatment center for further treatment.
6. Success Rates
Halfway houses have a much higher success rate than recovery houses do. This is because halfway houses will often send addicts straight back to the program that they just completed in aftercare. In contrast, recovery houses don’t always have a close connection with a specific addiction treatment center. A recovering addict will be much more likely to succeed in their sobriety if they are sent straight back into the treatment center that worked hard to get them sober in the first place.
The halfway house vs. recovery house debate is a personal one for many people in the addiction treatment community, and it often comes down to what type of care someone needs at this point in their life. Halfway houses are best for newly recovering addicts who need a lot of assistance with transitioning back into society. Recovery houses are best suited for an addict who has a firmer grasp on their sobriety and who is looking for a little independence after addiction treatment. With so much information available on both types of facilities, we hope that you can make an informed decision about which is best for your loved one’s situation when they come home from rehab.
