How Illinois Medicaid pays for addiction treatment
Illinois Medicaid covers addiction treatment, including detox, residential care, outpatient care and medications for opioid use disorder. HealthChoice Illinois is the state's Medicaid managed care program. According to SAMHSA and CMS, Medicaid is the single largest payer for substance use and mental health treatment in the US. Under the 2010 Affordable Care Act, substance use disorder treatment is an essential health benefit that many health plans must cover.
Before starting Medicaid rehab in Illinois, ask your plan which levels of care it will pay for and for how long.
Of the 766 Illinois facilities in our directory, 559 list outpatient care, far more than any other service, followed by co-occurring mental health care at 247, partial hospitalization at 84, intensive outpatient at 79, virtual or in-home care at 60, residential rehab at 54 and detox at 30.
Many facilities list more than one service, so the counts overlap and add up to more than 766. If you need mental health care alongside addiction treatment, look for programs that treat co-occurring conditions.
Who qualifies for Medicaid, and how to apply
Illinois HFS says adults with income up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level can be covered in the ACA adult group. You can apply online through the Application for Benefits Eligibility (ABE), the state's application site, or through HealthCare.gov. There is no enrollment period, and an application can be filed in any month of the year.
IDHS policy says medical benefits can be backdated for up to three months before the application, for months when you were eligible, which is known as retroactive eligibility. If you have already been in treatment, list it on your application and confirm with the state whether those months can be covered.
You do not have to put treatment off while your application is processed. While it is pending, ask about state-funded treatment and a sliding-scale fee on your first call.
State-funded treatment if you don't have Medicaid
In Illinois, publicly funded addiction treatment is overseen by the Illinois Department of Human Services, Division of Substance Use Prevention and Recovery (SUPR), which also licenses the state's substance use treatment providers.
The usual first step toward state-funded rehab is a call to the Illinois Helpline for Opioids and Other Substances at 1-833-234-6343. The line is answered 24 hours a day. SUPR-funded providers are expected to serve uninsured residents on a sliding scale.
Many state-funded rehab programs have waitlists for residential beds, while waits for outpatient care tend to be shorter. Pregnant women and people who inject drugs receive priority admission at federally funded programs. If a residential bed is not open yet, outpatient care may be a way to begin while you wait.
What treatment costs if you're not covered
We cannot quote a price, because costs vary by program and by your income. On a sliding scale, the fee is set by income, so people who earn less pay less, though the fee may still cost something.
Programs funded through SAMHSA block grants are expected to serve people who cannot pay, often on a sliding scale. If you have little or no income, ask what your fee will be rather than assuming it is zero. Before admission, have the program explain how your fee was set and whether it changes if you move from one level of care to another.
Facilities in our directory that take Medicaid
Our directory lists 766 Illinois facilities in 213 cities and towns, and 390 of them say they accept Medicaid. If you are looking for Medicaid rehab in Illinois, the list on this page is drawn from our database and shows only those 390 facilities.
Chicago has by far the most Medicaid-accepting listings with 116, followed by Waukegan, Elgin and Rockford with 8 each and Quincy with 5.
Before you go, confirm with both the facility and your plan that your coverage applies there.
Official resources in Illinois
- HealthChoice Illinois / apply (ABE): apply for Illinois Medicaid online.
- IDHS Division of Substance Use Prevention and Recovery: read about the state agency that funds and licenses substance use treatment providers.
- Illinois Helpline for Opioids and Other Substances: get connected with state-funded treatment, 24 hours a day.
- Illinois 211: look up community services and local help near you.
How to start today
Where you start depends on your situation: you have Medicaid, you have no coverage yet, or you need help today.
If you are in a HealthChoice Illinois plan, call your plan. You can also contact one of the Medicaid-accepting facilities listed on this page directly. If you have no coverage, call the Illinois Helpline and submit your Medicaid application the same day. SAMHSA's National Helpline, 1-800-662-4357, is free, confidential and open 24 hours, with help in English and Spanish.
Our Illinois rehab page is our hub for Illinois listings, and you can check your coverage on our insurance verification page. For support between appointments, our Illinois meetings directory lists AA and NA meetings across the state.
