Outpatient addiction treatment, 35 minutes from Palm Beach Gardens.

For Palm Beach Gardens residents, RECO offers a clinical density — PHP at 30+ hours weekly, IOP at ~15 hours, full psychiatry, MAT, and trauma-focused modalities — that the office-based outpatient practices near PGA Boulevard generally don't provide. The 35-minute I-95 drive is manageable for IOP commuters from PGA National or Mirasol, and for PHP we coordinate sober living in Delray so clients aren't driving 50 miles a day in early recovery. The same primary therapist follows each client from PHP through IOP through aftercare.

Palm Beach Gardens sits about 25 miles north of Delray Beach — a 35-minute run down I-95 for residents of PGA National, Mirasol, BallenIsles, Frenchman’s Reserve, or Old Palm. That drive matters because the clinical density available in southern Palm Beach County’s outpatient programs isn’t easily replicated by the office-based practices closer to PGA Boulevard. For a working professional, a college student home for the summer, or a retiree whose drinking has progressed past what a once-weekly therapist can address, the question isn’t whether outpatient treatment exists nearby — it’s whether the program can deliver the hours, the modalities, and the medical oversight a real substance use disorder requires. RECO Intensive runs a Partial Hospitalization Program and an Intensive Outpatient Program staffed by the same clinical team, with the same primary therapist following clients through each step down.

What outpatient addiction treatment actually means

Outpatient is a continuum, not a single thing. On the low-intensity end, standard outpatient looks like one or two therapy hours a week — appropriate for someone in stable recovery who needs maintenance and accountability. On the high-intensity end, Partial Hospitalization (PHP) runs 30+ structured clinical hours per week, five days a week, and functions as a near-residential level of care without the overnight bed. In between sits Intensive Outpatient (IOP) at roughly 15 hours weekly, usually three to four days per week, often scheduled to accommodate work or school.

For most people meeting criteria for a moderate-to-severe substance use disorder, the honest clinical answer is that one therapy session a week is not enough — at least not as a starting point. Early recovery requires repetition: of skills, of accountability, of being in a room with other people doing the same work. PHP and IOP exist because that repetition is what actually changes behavior. Stepping down to standard outpatient comes later, after the foundation is built.

Who outpatient is the right fit for

Placement decisions follow ASAM criteria, which assess six dimensions: acute intoxication and withdrawal risk, biomedical conditions, emotional and cognitive conditions, readiness to change, relapse potential, and recovery environment. Outpatient PHP or IOP is appropriate when withdrawal can be managed safely without 24-hour nursing, when medical and psychiatric comorbidities are stable enough for ambulatory care, and when the home or sober-living environment supports — rather than undermines — recovery.

For some clients arriving from northern Palm Beach County, the home environment in places like BallenIsles or Old Palm is genuinely supportive: a spouse who’s done their own Al-Anon work, a teenager who’s not using, a household that doesn’t keep alcohol in the kitchen. For others, even a beautiful home is a relapse environment — a country-club calendar built around cocktails, a workplace where lunch means wine. In those cases, the right answer may be a stay in residential care or relocating temporarily to sober living in Delray while attending PHP during the day.

What a PHP day looks like

PHP runs Monday through Friday, generally from mid-morning through mid-afternoon. The day is structured rather than scattered: a process group, a skills group (CBT, DBT, or relapse-prevention curriculum), an individual session with the primary therapist as scheduled, psychiatry on the days it’s needed, and an experiential block — which might be Trauma-Focused CBT or EMDR for clients with significant trauma histories, motivational interviewing for those still ambivalent about change, or a family session when relevant.

Medication-assisted treatment is part of the clinical picture when indicated. For alcohol use disorder, that means naltrexone or acamprosate. For opioid use disorder, buprenorphine or extended-release naltrexone (Vivitrol). MAT decisions are made by the psychiatrist in coordination with the primary therapist — not handed off to a separate prescriber the client has to find on their own. Clients dealing specifically with opioid dependence can read a more detailed clinical breakdown on the heroin and opioid treatment page; the alcohol treatment page covers the same depth for alcohol use disorder.

Sober living as part of the treatment plan

RECO operates its own network of sober-living residences in Delray Beach, coordinated directly with the clinical program. This matters in two specific situations. The first is when a Palm Beach Gardens client’s home environment isn’t yet ready to support recovery — an active-using partner, a household that revolves around drinking, a living situation that triggers use. The second is the logistics question: a 35-minute drive each way to PHP, five days a week, while still in early recovery and possibly on new medication, is not always realistic. Living in Delray during the PHP phase, then stepping down to IOP and commuting back to Palm Beach Gardens, is a common path.

Sober-living residents share a house with peers also in active treatment, follow house rules around curfew and random testing, and meet with house managers who coordinate with the clinical team. It is not the same as a residential treatment bed — clients are in outpatient treatment during the day and in the residence at night — but it provides the structure that early recovery often needs.

Length of treatment and the step-down

A typical outpatient course at RECO runs roughly 30 to 60 days at the PHP level, followed by 30 to 60 days at IOP, followed by a transition to weekly outpatient therapy and aftercare or alumni programming. These ranges are clinical defaults, not contracts. Some clients need longer at PHP because of a co-occurring psychiatric condition that takes time to stabilize. Others step down sooner because they’ve built a strong external support structure — a sponsor, regular meeting attendance, a supportive partner — that carries some of the weight a more intensive program would otherwise need to carry. The primary therapist follows the client through these transitions, which is why level-of-care changes feel like progress rather than starting over.

Insurance and how to start

Most major commercial plans cover PHP and IOP when medical necessity is documented under ASAM criteria — including Aetna, Cigna, BlueCross BlueShield, and many regional Florida plans. Coverage details vary by plan and by employer, which is why we do a benefits check before admission rather than making promises. The insurance verification page covers the process; for most callers from Palm Beach Gardens it takes a short phone call to get a clear answer on copays, deductibles, and authorization. The intake team can also discuss self-pay structures and answer practical questions about scheduling the I-95 commute or coordinating sober living before the first day.

Serving residents of: BallenIsles, Frenchman's Reserve, Mirasol, Old Palm, PGA National.