Yesterday it was announced that California would be taking many parolees off parole and releasing non-violent offenders. According to the Orange County Register,  "More than 1,500 county inmates have been reported to have been released statewide under the new guidelines, including 401 inmates from Orange County jails. Most of those inmates were released by counties that interpreted the law to mean that inmates could earn time off their sentences retroactively – resulting in the some early releases on the day the law took effect." Most of these inmates are non-violent offenders, well behaved, and do not present a physical risk to others in the sense that they were not convicted of sex crimes or violent crimes.  What that means is that most of the people being released are drug addicts and alcoholics with drug and alcohol violations.  Almost everyone can agree that treatment within jails for alcoholism and drug addiction is not the best, and that most of these addicts and alcoholics will be released untreated.  


According to the Orange County Register, "In the Sacramento case, Superior Court Judge Loren E. McMaster said that the release of inmates into the streets under the new provisions, while the number of deputies is being reduced, is a 'formula for disaster.'"  
As I have stated before, this is a Formula For Disaster!  Drug and alcohol rehabs in Orange County and in California will surely be inundated with clients.  I guess that's good for business, but no one wants what's about to happen in California to happen. 


The only way this would have been able to work, and perhaps even help, would have been if every County in California had already set up drug diversion programs and drug courts that these inmates could be transferred in to upon their release.  Unfortunately most of those programs have been cut as well, leaving the inmates with no resources.  I'm all for releasing people from prison and jail with non-violent drug offenses, but only if it means they will be going to addiction treatment.  


So once again I'm suggesting that all Californians consider moving out of state or stay off the roads after 10pm and definitely don't drive on the weekends.  There might be a lot of drunk and drugged drivers on the road sooner than later.  

Labels: California Addiction Treatment, California Releasing Inmates, Economy and Drug and Alcohol Treatment

Labels: California, California Addiction Treatment, California Budget Crisis and Drug Rehabs, California State Budget Crisis

Recently there was a riot at a California prison. Inmates rioted resulting in over 100 injuries. The riot comes at a time when California is faced with some tough decisions regarding its jails and prisons. Jails and prisons in California, because of the budget crisis, must cut beds and staff. In previous blog posts I discussed the problems this will create in California. California will have to find ways to put criminals back out on the street to lessen its prison and jail population. One of the more likely solutions to this problem will be to send non-violent drug offenders to probation approved drug and alcohol treatment facilities in California, but this poses another problem. There are only a handful of probation approved facilities in California and these facilities are not necessarily of the highest quality. What's more, many of the probation approved drug and alcohol treatment facilities in California are funded partly by the California and they have been forced to cut their beds as well, making private pay facilities the only other option for many non-violent drug offenders. The recent California prison riot is just the foreshadowing of things to come. It will get worse and California's budget crisis is forcing everyone, including prisoners, into a corner. It seems no one in the government has thoroughly thought this through. When the initial California budget was signed the part having to do with California's prisons and jails was put on the back burner, because I think many people in government wisely realized what the grave consequences of the budget cuts meant to California's jails and prisons.

California's prison and jail population is dangerously overcrowded and the recent riot has only emphasized this problem. At last the prison and jail population is being forced to reduce its population, but at what cost to the public? Does anyone have a reasonable solution to what will happen to all of these people? Time will tell... be prepared for more problems...

Labels: California Addiction Treatment, Orange County Drug and Alcohol Treatment, Probation Approved Treatment

Finding an addiction treatment facility (Especially in California) that helps its clients with legal matters related to drug and/or alcohol use is not hard to do, but finding a court ordered drug addiction treatment facility that specializes in helping its clients with legal issues is much harder task. At NTS we have Court Liaisons who have many years of experience in working with California judges and lawyers. We provide detailed court reports and work with a client's legal team to help them with any pending legal cases. This service is free and included in the price of treatment. At NTS we take pride in being able to seamlessly combine a client's addiction treatment with their legal treatment. Many top lawyers in Orange County and California choose NTS as their addiction treatment facility of choice when their client's need treatment, not simply because we are experienced and efficient at working with the lawyers and courts in resolving legal matters, but because we offer exceptional addiction treatment. NTS is probation approved.

Labels: California Addiction Treatment, Court Services in Drug and Alcohol Treatment, DUI Help

Affordable addiction treatment in California is not easy to find. Some of the most affordable places for drug and alcohol treatment in California are not always the best. If you are looking for affordable drug treatment in California make sure you look at the drug treatment center's daily program schedule and check to see what they offer. Some affordable sober living drug treatment facilities in California may at first glance appear more affordable, but when you arrive they hit you with ancillary charges for services that you might have assumed were included in the cost of treatment. For example, many California addiction treatment centers charge extra for services such as therapy sessions, psychiatric assessments and medication assessments, gym memberships, food, etc... Ask your potential drug treatment center what is included in the cost and what is not. That way you can get a better idea of which treatment facility is truly a good deal.

Labels: Affordable Drug Treatment in California, California Addiction Treatment, California Drug Treatment

The California State Budget Crisis has had some impact on probation approved drug and alcohol treatment programs in Orange County. Because the State is out of money, many State run drug and alcohol rehabs, which are probation approved, have had to cut back on the number of people they accept. This is a severe situation. This means that people who lack money to go to drug and alcohol treatment programs will not be able to find beds in the State funded facilities. This will create a domino effect that has yet to be felt! In Orange County, California, when people are sentenced to drug and alcohol treatment, they are given a list of probation approved facilities. Only a handful of those facilities are State funded, meaning that they can take people at little to no cost. If these "free" drug and alcohol rehabs in California are not able to take people who have been sentenced to treatment, then they will have to stop alternative sentencing and incarcerate them instead. This will increase the jail population and increase overcrowding in Orange County jails. The poor state of the economy is not helping either. With less and less State funded drug and alcohol facilities in Orange County, more people will have to turn to private pay drug and alcohol treatment facilities.

Labels: California Addiction Treatment, California State Budget Crisis, Orange County Probabtion Approved Treatment

Dual diagnosis in addiction treatment is more common today than ever. The number of people entering a drug rehab in Orange County with a co-occurring psychological emotional disorder, such as depression, anxiety, or bi-polar disorder, has increased over the years exponentially. Each year it seems that there are more and more people entering treatment with major depression, bi-polar disorder, and acute psychosis. Whether it is the drugs that have caused the emotional or psychological disorder or whether the disorder existed prior to the drugs, does not necessarily matter when it comes to treatment. Many drug rehabs have attempted to adjust their treatment to accommodate the high rate of dually diagnosed clients, but few have been able to rise to the level of care needed to successfully treat a dually diagnosed clients. At NTS Treatment Centers, located in Orange County, California, we have combined traditional drug and alcohol treatment with psychological methods to create a superior treatment effect.

Labels: California Addiction Treatment, Dual Diagnosis, Orange County Drug and Alcohol Treatment

Drug Rehabs in California have seen a boom in recent years. What essentially happened was that people who went through treatment in Orange County, or got sober in Orange County, either at a drug rehab or even on their own, began wanting to open up their own drug rehabs in Orange County. Once the Residential Addiction Treatment model had been perfected by places like Sober Living By The Sea, others could see how they operated and soon people were opening up their own residential drug treatment facilities all over Orange County. The same thing happened most recently in Malibu, California. People who went through treatment in Malibu, at places like Promises, began to see how they could open up their own drug rehabs in Malibu. It wasn't long before Malibu began seeing a jump in drug rehabs. One of the primary reasons Malibu and Newport Beach, or Coastal Orange County, are such great places to open rehabs is because of the coastal location. When all is said and done, if you or your loved one is deciding to go to treatment and the choice is between Malibu and the Arizona desert (Sierra Tuscon), then people will most likely choose Malibu. Opening up residential addiction treatment facilities in Orange County and Malibu is not the most cost effective option to say the least. It would be much cheaper to open a place in Texas or Utah, but no one wants to go to drug rehab in Texas or Utah. Many people wonder if the drug rehab business will survive with the tremendous growth the industry has seen in recent years. The answer is yes and no. One of the larger companies CRC Health Group, just shut down many of their drug rehabs across the Country, but some of the better run, more organized, and well staffed, drug rehabs will survive through good economic times and bad. There will always be people with drug and alcohol problems who need drug and alcohol treatment. The trick in the drug treatment industry is finding those people and making sure they find you. There's the rub...

Labels: California Addiction Treatment, History of Rehabs in Newport Beach, Orange County Drug Rehab History

Orange County is one of the best places in the world to get sober and stay sober. I came to treatment in Orange County, California in 1997 to get sober and I have never left. This is a common occurrence for people who go to drug rehabs in Orange County, California because the drug rehab and recovery community in Orange County, California is one of the best in the world. 12 Step Recovery meetings in Orange County, California are a step above AA meetings in other parts of the country. For example, in AA meetings in Orange County, California people clap after someone shares in a meeting. They do no clap in meetings in other parts of the country, not even Los Angeles. There is also more long-term sobriety in Orange County, California AA and NA meetings. I came to Orange County, California to get sober and stayed in Orange County, California so I could remain sober. Orange County, California truly is the best place I have found to start a new life and recover from drugs and alcohol. If it weren't I wouldn't still be here. Sincerely, An Orange County Californian

Labels: California Addiction Treatment, Orange County, Southern California Drug Treatment

In Orange County, California there are many drug rehabs and addiction treatment facilities to choose from. One of the reasons there are so many drug and alcohol treatment facilities in Orange County is because the 12 Step recovery community in Orange County is one of the best in the world. There are more AA meetings in Orange County per square mile than any place in the world. The alcohol and addiction treatment facilities in Orange County feed the 12 Step community in Orange County, ever growing the recovery population in the county. Orange County, California is not the only place to recover, but it is one of the best. There are numerous Alano Clubs in Orange County that have 12 Step meetings around the clock, giving addiction treatment facilities a variety of places to take their clients for AA and NA meetings. Taking clients to "outside" AA and NA meetings is one of the most important components of residential and primary addiction treatment facilities. When clients in treatment go to local AA and NA meetings they are exposed to others with more experience, strength, and hope than they have. They are able to find sponsors at AA and NA meetings, as well as connect socially to the recovery community so that when they are living on their own outside of treatment, they will feel comfortable attending the same meetings they attended while in treatment. Orange County, California also provides a beautiful setting to recover from drugs and alcohol. NTS Treatment Centers is located in the Coastal Community of Newport Beach/Costa Mesa area, which means that we are very close to the beach. Many clients who go through NTS end up remaining in the Orange County area, not just because of the excellent recovery community, but because its beatiful location.

Labels: California Addiction Treatment, Orange County, Sober Beach Living