Date of Graduation

5-2021

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Journalism (MA)

Degree Level

Graduate

Department

Journalism

Advisor/Mentor

Rob Wells

Committee Member

Raymond McCaffrey

Second Committee Member

Colleen Thurston

Keywords

Abuse, Accessibility, Affordability, Arkansas, Drug, Health Insurance, Public Health System, Recovery, Rehabilitation

Abstract

This thesis is going to examine how people recover from drug addiction and see if there are any similarities due to their socioeconomic statuses at the time of recovery. This research addresses the following questions: How accessible and affordable are drug addiction recovery programs and rehabilitation facilities in Arkansas for mid- to low-income individuals? What are the social costs for people who can’t obtain drug rehabilitation services? The goal of this research is to explore whether there is a lack of affordable recovery programs in the state of Arkansas. This project utilizes survey responses as well as in-depth interviews with participants who remain anonymous. This study found that people with insurance often have “first-pick” when it comes to getting into rehabilitation programs and when the person does not have insurance, the costs can be about $1000 a day. This study also uncovered that some people that require low-cost or free drug rehabilitation resources, do not know that they exist.

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