How Much Does Addiction Treatment Cost in Australia? A Complete Guide to Recovery Options & Prices

That's the million dollar question! Often this is one of the first questions you or your family will ask when researching what options are available for you to overcome your addiction. 

I get it. Price matters (while it shouldn't be the only consideration, it is pretty important for most people). 

Price can often impact what type of recovery model, treatment method, funding format, and treatment process you can choose from (Get our FREE mini course outlining each of these points by downloading What Is Recovery).

But first thing's first, you need to develop an initial budget and also plan for the longer-term recovery costs. Now, that's true no matter what your financial circumstances are because remember, money isn't the only cost associated with the recovery journey! But the "how much do you need" question is tough to answer in a simple way because addiction recovery treatment options are so varied.

Throughout my years of experience, I have offered answers to this question countless times. And my goal is to demystify the process for everyone with an interest in seeking addiction treatment in a transparent way. Please keep in mind that the prices I provide in this article are only estimates based on my industry knowledge and experience. You may find different prices as you continue your research, though this article should help you to understand the things to look out for when making your decision. 

How do I choose the right addiction treatment program for me?

In Australia, all drug and alcohol addiction treatment centres were legally required to be accredited by an external body since 2021. This means that the area of addiction treatment was, for a long time, unregulated and unmanaged. This recent legal requirement is a step forward for client outcomes in Australia and I hope it has reduced the chances of negative experiences. 

That being said, knowing what to look out for when choosing a rehab or addiction treatment program will help you to reduce the chances of a negative experience and limit your losses in time and money. Our free online mini course, What Is Recovery, is a great place to learn more about this information. You can register for this mini course for free here.

Here is one relevant part of the What Is Recovery mini course:

How much does addiction treatment really cost?

As you learnt in the above video, there are private funding and public funding formats. So let's break things down into the two funding formats first.

Public Funding

In Australia, there are many publicly funded options such as public hospital detox programs or community based rehabs. Each of these publicly funded options come with their pro's and con's. 

Pro's

A clear benefit of choosing a publicly funded treatment option is not having any out of pocket expenses. This means that no matter what your financial situation is, there are options available for you to choose from when you are ready to make a change. Below I have provided a list of the national research pages to help you narrow your search. 

Con's 

The reality that comes with public funding is the majority of options are either through the public system (which often means long waitlists) or charities (that are often under-funded and therefore might not have the level of luxury you are looking for). Additionally, the challenge with most publicly funded rehabs is they are long-term (between 3-12 months), inpatient (meaning you need to live on the premises for the duration of the program), and often only offer the Abstinence Based Recovery (12-Steps) model in a Therapeutic Community.

This means that while there are always free and low cost options for addiction treatment in Australia, you may be limited on choice within these options. 

Where you can find more information:

Australian Drug Foundation (ADF): https://adf.org.au/help-support/ 

Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care: https://www.health.gov.au/our-work/drug-help/how-to-find-help 

SMART Recovery Australia: https://smartrecoveryaustralia.com.au/

Private Funding

In Australia, like around the world, there are a plethora of private addiction rehabilitation options and they all come with varying price ranges and options. Think of it like buying a car. Usually you will start with the make, then the model, then the colour and interiors. The same can be true for choosing the private addiction treatment program you want. Try to stay with me here because it can feel like a spiderweb sometimes. 

As outlined in the video above, there are two private funding pathways; Private Health Insurance or Personal Finance. 

Private Health Insurance

As with everything, there are pro's and con's to using Private Health Insurance as your funding pathway. The most limiting aspect to this pathway is usually you are only able to complete a 21-day inpatient stay at a participating private psychiatric hospital, and then you can access their outpatient group programs for 3 months after your stay. This process is really helpful if you require a medically supervised detox or if you want a physical barrier to help with your initial withdrawals. 

The out of pocket amounts will often depend on what health fund you are with, what level of cover you have, and which hospital you choose to attend. Sometimes the hospital will have a partnership with your health fund and you will have zero out of pocket costs. Other times you will need to pay your gap, which is often around $1,000. 

Personal Finance

This option is the 'choose your own adventure' pathway because your choices are often only limited by your access to finances. You can choose from an inpatient short-term program (between 7-28 days), a longer-term resort style program (anywhere from 1-6 months), or even an outpatient program (The TARA Clinic's programs offer up to 18-months of guidance, accountability and support). 

The great benefit of choosing this funding pathway is you can really look at each aspect of the recovery process and mix and match the solution that is right for you. Do you want an inpatient stay? If so, how long can you confidently take off from work to commit to this process? In my opinion, anything less than 4 weeks is likely to be too short unless you have a clear long-term aftercare program set up. The TARA Clinic often provides the structured aftercare needed after an inpatient stay. So if you are considering a shorter term inpatient program, make sure you speak with the rehab about their aftercare (in my opinion, anything under 12 months of structured aftercare isn't enough because the research states that 12-18 months of active work in recovery is the best predictor for lasting change). Whatever option you choose, you can expect a range from $1,600/month (at the time of writing this, this is the price for the online outpatient programs at The TARA Clinic) anywhere up to $100,000/month. 

What funding format should I choose?

It's going to be no surprise to you that my initial answer is "whatever works with your budget and meets your needs". Though I strongly recommend that you take time and money into consideration when researching the addiction treatment option for you. Your time is valuable, and it is an important consideration to keep in mind while also remembering that your recovery journey will take at least 18-months to complete. 

You may have noticed I've mentioned time often through this article. That's because recovery isn't something you get, it's something you do. Only through long-term implementation of the tools and strategies will you actively create the lasting change you are looking for. So, while it will likely be appealing to choose a shorter treatment option now, you may find yourself needing to re-do the program or experience relapses because you didn't give yourself the time required to truly make the change. And this is backed up by the research! The research states that 12-18 months of active work in recovery is the best predictor for lasting change. 

This is why, at The TARA Clinic, we set our clients up for success from the start! With our 3-Step Blueprint to Lasting Recovery we guide you through a clear path to reach your goals over 18 months. Plus, with our programs aligning with adult learning principles and being accredited with the Australian Service Excellence Standards, you can feel confident that the support you receive and the practical tools you learn over the time you're with us will empower you to create lasting change. 

Now, as you can see there are many variables to consider when choosing the right addiction program for your needs and your budget. I hope this article has helped to clear the fog and demystified the process of understanding the financial investment you are making into your future. You can also check out our FAQs article here.

We are happy to help you to reach your recovery goals and give you the path to your success. Book a call with us now and find the freedom you truly crave.