Physician prescribed · Reviewed weekly · Encino, Los Angeles
Medication-assisted treatment combines FDA-approved medication with therapy to treat opioid and alcohol use disorders. Here it runs inside detox and residential care under a Medical Director and Nurse Practitioner. Medication and therapy, not one instead of the other.
“New Spirit Recovery helped me when I was detoxing hard for about a week. The staff were kind to me the whole time. When I thought about leaving early, they helped me slow down and choose recovery instead. By discharge I was grateful I stayed — they even set up appointments for my leg issues, and I’m doing better now.”
“New Spirit Recovery has changed my whole life drastically — they gave me a second chance to rewire my life and live a new one. The staff is caring and genuine, and the director and operations director guided me through the program and gave me every opportunity to be a better person. They set me up for success and I can’t thank them enough for saving my life.”
“New Spirit Recovery was beneficial to my recovery. Here I learned tools to help me manage my emotions safely — journaling and breathing have been amazing tools I picked up while here. All the staff were incredible and patient. I am grateful to have come here and actually use the tools suggested.”
“This program teaches you how to set realistic goals and become a better version of yourself, with all the tools to start building a new foundation. The therapist and case manager give each client an individualized, tailor-made treatment plan. Serene surroundings, a private chef, daily groups, and weekend outings. If you’re looking for a way out of addiction, give New Spirit Recovery a call.”
“The staff is amazing. I was completely unable to detox on my own and find the right path. The food and facilities were amazing — and I found my way again. My mom and I go to church together again now. Thank you all so much.”
Medical evaluation within 24 hours · weekly minimum physician review
Who decides, and when
Medication-assisted treatment, or MAT, is the use of FDA-approved medication alongside counselling to treat substance use disorders. The medication reduces withdrawal and craving so that therapy can do its work. Neither half works as well alone.
Every client meets our medical team within 24 hours of admission for a full medication evaluation. That covers substance use history, last use, prior withdrawal episodes, medical history, psychiatric history, and anything you are already taking. Nothing is prescribed off a template.
Our Medical Director and Nurse Practitioner make the prescribing decision. Which class of medication fits depends on the substance, how far through withdrawal you are, your medical history and your own preference, which counts more than people expect. You are told what is being prescribed and why before you take it.
MAT is offered where it is clinically indicated. It is not a condition of admission, and declining it does not cost you your bed.
You have physician consultations at a weekly minimum, more often when acuity calls for it. Withdrawal changes shape over days and a prescription that was right on Monday can be wrong by Friday. Twenty-four-hour nursing means symptoms get scored and escalated between those reviews rather than waiting for them.
How medication works during medical detoxMAT without therapy is dispensing. Alongside the prescription you are in six hours of programming a day during residential treatment: CBT, DBT, trauma-focused work, relapse prevention and the Rewired curriculum. The medication quiets craving enough for that work to land.
Where a co-occurring condition is present, psychiatric prescribing runs through the same team rather than a separate one, which is the point of integrated dual diagnosis treatment.
If your plan includes continuing medication after residential treatment, that continuation is arranged as part of discharge planning, alongside the step-down programming we coordinate. Stopping abruptly because paperwork lapsed is a preventable relapse, and preventing it is a case management job we take seriously.
Why it works here
Weekly minimum physician consultations, with 24-hour nursing between them. Most outpatient prescribing runs on monthly appointments, which means a month of a wrong prescription before anyone finds out.
Medication for a substance use disorder and medication for depression, bipolar disorder or PTSD are prescribed by the same medical team, so interactions get caught and nobody plays messenger between two clinics.
Some people want it, some want nothing to do with it, and both positions get respected. MAT is one tool in the plan. If you decline, treatment continues and nobody makes you argue for it twice.
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What gets used, and for what
MAT uses several classes of FDA-approved medication depending on the substance and the stage of treatment: agonist and antagonist medications for opioid use disorder, anti-craving medications for alcohol use disorder, plus comfort and psychiatric medications alongside them.
| What it treats | Class of medication | What it does | Where we use it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Opioid use disorder | Partial opioid agonist | Eases withdrawal and reduces craving without producing a high at prescribed doses | Detox and residential |
| Opioid use disorder | Opioid antagonist, including a long-acting injectable form | Blocks the effect of opioids and reduces craving. Requires full withdrawal first | Residential, once withdrawal has resolved |
| Alcohol use disorder | Opioid antagonist | Reduces craving and heavy-drinking days | Detox and residential |
| Alcohol use disorder | Glutamate-modulating anti-craving agent | Supports abstinence after acute withdrawal has passed | Residential |
| Acute withdrawal symptoms | Comfort medications | Treat nausea, insomnia, agitation and pain as symptoms emerge | Detox |
| Co-occurring conditions | SSRIs, SNRIs, mood stabilisers, non-benzodiazepine anxiolytics, antipsychotics | Treat depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety, PTSD, OCD and psychosis alongside the substance use | All levels of care |
We publish classes rather than brand names because the right medication is a decision between you and your physician, not something to pre-select from a web page. For background reading on one commonly prescribed option, see our article on how this class of medication works and what to expect. Nothing on this page is a prescription or medical advice.
The language changed, the treatment did not
Many clinicians now say MOUD, medications for opioid use disorder, rather than MAT. It is not a straight rename: MOUD is narrower and opioid-specific, while MAT stays the broader term covering alcohol use disorder and the counselling alongside it.
| Term | Stands for | What it covers | Still in use? |
|---|---|---|---|
| MAT | Medication-assisted treatment | The whole framework: medication plus counselling, for opioid and alcohol use disorder | Yes, widely |
| MOUD | Medications for opioid use disorder | The medications themselves, specifically for opioid use disorder | Yes, increasingly preferred |
The shift happened because the word “assisted” suggested medication was a temporary helper behind the real treatment. It is not. It is a core part of the treatment, which is why federal bodies moved the language and why the objection in the next section keeps coming up.
The thing everyone says
No. Addiction is compulsive use that damages your life. MAT is a measured dose of a prescribed medication under medical supervision that lets your life work again. The behaviour, the dose control and the outcome are all different.
Plenty of prescribed medications produce physical dependence without addiction. Nobody says a person with a thyroid condition is addicted to their medication. The distinction is compulsion and harm, not whether your body notices a missed dose.
MAT for opioid use disorder is among the better-supported interventions in addiction medicine, which is why it is recommended by ASAM and SAMHSA. Refusing it on principle is a decision to decline an effective treatment.
Duration is a clinical decision reviewed at least weekly, not a life sentence and not a fixed course. Some people taper off, some stay on it long term, and both are legitimate outcomes when a physician is making the call with you.
Never start, stop or change a prescribed medication based on a web page. If you are in crisis, call or text 988 any time, or call 911 if you are in immediate danger.
Where you’ll actually be
Medication-assisted treatment here happens in a licensed home with 24-hour nursing, not a waiting room with a dispensing window. Our residences are in Tarzana, Northridge and Encino.
That matters for prescribing specifically. When staffing runs at roughly one person per client, the people who see how you respond to a medication overnight are the same people reporting it to the prescriber in the morning.
Meet the medical and clinical teamSmall enough to know your name
Co-Founder
Author and recovery specialist. Created the Rewired curriculum, ten modules that run here and nowhere else.
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Clinical Director
Licensed since 2018, dual mental-health and substance-use background. Oversees clinical programming across all properties. Twenty-four years in recovery himself.
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Director of Nursing
A Licensed Vocational Nurse since 2020 with extensive behavioral health and substance use experience across detox and residential settings
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Clinical Psychologist
Clinical supervisor and a professor at California Lutheran University. Works across sites on crisis management and treatment planning.
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Program Director
Directs day-to-day operations and client care. Seven-plus years in the industry, five in management.
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Operations Director
Handles the logistics that make admission possible, including travel and transport from LAX or Burbank.
Read full bioThe question everyone asks first
Most PPO plans cover medication-assisted treatment when it is medically necessary, as part of covered detox and residential care. Your benefits, deductible, copay and coinsurance determine what you pay, and some plans handle medication under a separate pharmacy benefit.
We check both sides for free before you travel, so you are not surprised by a pharmacy copay you did not know about. We accept all standard private insurance and hold a VACCN and TriWest contract for veterans.
We do not accept Medicaid, Medi-Cal or Medicare. Cash pay is available. MAT is one part of the clinical picture at our Los Angeles drug rehab, and it is priced inside the level of care rather than sold as an add-on.
More on insurance verification and the admissions process. Veterans: mention your VACCN or TriWest coverage when you call.
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Looking for MAT near you?
Medication-assisted treatment is delivered at our licensed homes in the Valley, off the 101 at Balboa. We admit from across the metro and nationwide, with transport arranged from LAX or Burbank.
Common questions
MAT is the use of FDA-approved medication together with counselling to treat substance use disorders, most commonly opioid and alcohol use disorder. The medication reduces withdrawal and craving. The therapy addresses why the use started and what keeps it going.
The medication examples fall into classes: agonist and antagonist medications for opioid use disorder, and anti-craving medications for alcohol use disorder, alongside comfort and psychiatric medications. The therapy examples are CBT, DBT, ACT, trauma-focused work and relapse prevention. We publish classes rather than brand names, and your physician names the specific medication during your evaluation.
Many clinicians now use MOUD, medications for opioid use disorder. It is not a straight rename: MOUD is opioid-specific and refers to the medications themselves, while MAT remains the broader term covering alcohol use disorder and the counselling alongside it. Federal bodies moved the language because “assisted” understated medication’s role.
No. Addiction means compulsive use that damages your life. MAT is a prescribed, measured, supervised medication that lets your life function. Physical dependence on a prescribed medication is not the same as addiction, and the evidence behind MAT for opioid use disorder is strong.
The benefit is that it reduces withdrawal and craving enough for therapy to work, which improves retention in treatment. The tradeoffs are side effects, the need for ongoing medical review, and physical dependence with some classes. Your physician walks you through both sides.
Most major PPO plans cover MAT when it is medically necessary, as part of covered detox and residential care. Some plans handle the medication under a separate pharmacy benefit. We verify both free before you travel. We do not accept Medicaid, Medi-Cal or Medicare; cash pay is available.
No. Dispensing methadone for opioid use disorder requires certification as an Opioid Treatment Program, which is a separate federal and state designation. We provide the other FDA-approved medication classes inside our detox and residential programs, and we will refer you appropriately if an Opioid Treatment Program is the right fit.
Yes. There are FDA-approved medication classes for alcohol use disorder that reduce craving and support abstinence, and they are part of treatment here alongside therapy. See our alcohol addiction treatment program for the full picture.
That is a clinical decision reviewed at a weekly minimum, not a fixed course. Some people taper off during or after treatment, others continue longer term. Both are legitimate outcomes, and the plan is made with you rather than handed to you.
No. MAT is offered where clinically indicated and declining it does not affect your admission or your bed. Comfort medications during withdrawal are a separate conversation, and your physician will explain what is being recommended and why in each case.
It depends on the class. Antagonist medications require that opioids have fully cleared, because starting too early can trigger sudden and severe withdrawal. This is one reason MAT decisions are made by a physician inside a medically supervised detox rather than at home.
Ten minutes, a few questions, and a real answer about your coverage and whether medication fits your situation. Someone picks up at any hour, including this one.