This report presents results from the Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS) for approximately 1.5 million discharges from substance abuse treatment in 2006. The report provides information on treatment completion, length of stay in treatment, and demographic and substance abuse characteristics of discharges from alcohol or drug treatment in facilities that reported to individual State administrative data systems. Data are presented for specific service types rather than for treatment episodes, which can involve treatment in multiple service types.

• 42 States submitted 1,541,004 eligible records for discharges occurring in 2006
• 97 percent of these records (n = 1,502,285) could be linked to a TEDS admission record from 2000 through 2006 [Tables 2.1a and 2.1b]

Type of Service
Of the 1,502,285 discharges in 2006 [Table 2.2b]:¹

• 41 percent were discharged from outpatient treatment
• 23 percent were discharged from detoxification
• 11 percent were discharged from intensive outpatient treatment
• 10 percent were discharged from short-term residential treatment
• 8 percent were discharged from long-term residential treatment
• 5 percent were discharged from medication-assisted (i.e., using methadone or buprenorphine) opioid therapy or detoxification
  Less than 1 percent were discharged from hospital residential treatment

Reason for Discharge
Of the 1,502,285 discharges in 2006 [Table 2.3b]:¹

• 47 percent of the discharges completed treatment
• 13 percent of the discharges were transferred to further treatment
• 25 percent of the discharges dropped out of treatment
• 8 percent of the discharges had treatment terminated by the facility
• 2 percent of the discharges were incarcerated
• Less than 1 percent of the discharges were because of death
• 5 percent of the discharges failed to complete treatment for other reasons
  

Treatment Completion by Type of Service
The treatment completion rate was 47 percent for discharges from all service types combined. For the individual service types, treatment was completed by [Table 2.4]:

• 70 percent of discharges from hospital residential treatment
• 67 percent of discharges from detoxification
• 59 percent of discharges from short-term residential treatment
• 44 percent of discharges from long-term residential treatment
• 40 percent of discharges from outpatient treatment
• 39 percent of discharges from intensive outpatient treatment
• 33 percent of discharges from medication-assisted opioid detoxification
• 12 percent of discharges from outpatient medication-assisted opioid therapy

Median Length of Stay (LOS)
The median LOS in treatment by type of service [Table 2.4]:

• 156 days for discharges from outpatient medication-assisted opioid therapy
• 87 days for discharges from outpatient treatment
• 58 days for discharges from long-term residential treatment
• 50 days for discharges from intensive outpatient treatment
• 22 days for discharges from short-term residential treatment
• 17 days for discharges from hospital residential treatment
• 14 days for discharges from medication-assisted opioid detoxification
• 4 days for discharges from detoxification

The median LOS by type of service, limited to only those who completed treatment [Table 2.4]:

• 183 days for discharges completing outpatient medication-assisted opioid therapy
• 121 days for discharges completing outpatient treatment
• 90 days for discharges completing long-term residential treatment
• 64 days for discharges completing intensive outpatient treatment
• 27 days for discharges completing short-term residential treatment
• 20 days for discharges completing hospital residential treatment
• 10 days for discharges completing medication-assisted opioid detoxification
• 4 days for discharges completing detoxification
  

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