October 4, 2018

With the opioid epidemic continuing to plague America, it’s never been more important to help those suffering from addiction find quality and trusted treatment options. Addiction is a complex medical issue that requires clinical treatment to address both the disease of addiction and co-occurring mental health issues, such as depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder.

Unfortunately, there are some bad actors in the addiction treatment industry who lure patients to treatment centers that may not be the best option to meet their medical needs. Through patient brokering, hijacking business listings on search engines and aggregating calls for other treatment centers without disclosing conflicts of interest, these perpetrators are misleading and hurting patients. This, in turn, makes the public skeptical of the industry as a whole and discourages those who need treatment from seeking help.

As the industry matures, we find ourselves at an important turning point in addiction treatment. More people need treatment than ever but industry reforms are needed to protect patients.

Last year, Google removed addiction treatment-related search terms from its Google Ads platform, suspending addiction treatment marketing efforts on that important medium. Google has since hired an independent third-party to audit treatment centers on various criteria — including criminal background checks, license verification and a commitment to best practices — and allowed those that meet the criteria back on the platform.

Read the entire piece on The Hill.