The new PSAs are a prelude to the September observance of the 10th National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month.  This year's theme is Addiction Treatment: Investing in People for Business Success. The effort is aimed at highlighting the benefits to be gained from corporate and small business workplace substance abuse referral programs.  Campaign kits for creating local Recovery Month celebrations are also being released today.

Nearly 73 percent of all illegal drug users in the United States are employed—6.7 million full-time workers and 1.6 million part-time workers—according the 1997 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse published by SAMHSA.  Lost productivity, high employee turnover, low employee morale, mistakes and accidents, and increased worker's compensation insurance and health insurance premiums are all results of untreated substance abuse problems in the workplace.

"The effects of substance abuse are not just measured in terms of lost job productivity, they are also measured in destroyed lives and shattered families," said SAMHSA Administrator, Nelba Chavez, Ph.D.  "Whether you are a corporate CEO or a small business owner, you need to know that simple, effective steps—including ready access to treatment, workplace policies and employee education—can lower substance abuse and its human and economic effects in your business.  Once you know, you can make it happen."

CSAT Director, H. Westley Clark, M.D., J.D., M.P.H., notes that "American companies concerned about productivity and safety issues should take the lead in allocating resources to develop sound workplace substance abuse policies," he said.  "Many companies across the nation have recognized this problem, and realized that with proper treatment employees who have a substance abuse problem can, and do become happy, healthy and productive workers," he added.

The PSAs address substance abuse and its effects on the workplace such as lost productivity, absenteeism, safety, lower employee morale, and higher insurance costs.  The PSAs encourage businesses to have a treatment referral program in place to help employees and their bottom line.  The spots reflect the mutual benefits to both the employee and the employer when a substance abuse treatment program is made available.

The Recovery Month kit is intended to help inform businesses and other community leaders that recovery from substance abuse is possible and that supporting treatment for employees results in increased productivity, improved staff morale, and overall business success.  Both products being released help raise awareness about the importance of supporting access to substance abuse treatment programs in the workplace.

Recovery Month is a month-long celebration recognizing the tremendous strides taken by individuals who have undergone successful treatment and salutes those in the field whom have dedicated their lives to helping people in need.  The celebration educates policy makers, federal, state and local government entities, business leaders, unions, substance abuse providers and the general public about the critical role substance abuse treatment plays in reclaiming lives ravaged by alcohol and drug addiction and abuse.

CSAT is joined by an impressive cadre of national and local constituency groups to help raise public awareness about the benefits of substance abuse treatment.  Major co-sponsors of this year's celebration include the American Psychological Association—Office of Substance Abuse, Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America, Employee Assistance Professionals Association, National Association of Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Leadership Forum, National Partnership for Recovery and Prevention, National Substance Abuse Coalition, Recovery Network, SAMHSA's Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, U.S. Department of Labor—Working Partners for an Alcohol- and Drug-Free Workplace, and the U.S. Small Business Administration.  In addition, nearly thirty other businesses and constituency organizations are partners in the 1999 celebration.

During the month of September, CSAT, along with the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA), is hosting a series of "Community Forums" in  20 cities nationwide.  The forums will focus on local substance abuse problems in the respective cities and how the community can address these problems at the local level.

Additional information on the celebration is available on the Recovery Month interactive web site.  Access can be gained by either through the SAMHSA/CSAT web site at csat.samhsa.gov/ or at ncadi.samhsa.gov/recovery99.  The site offers a What's New area, information about Recovery Month celebrations being held in local communities around the country (which will be updated as new information is received), related links and organizations, a press room, business exemplars, a listing of Recovery Month partners, the actual kit, video feeds of the related PSAs and the capabilities to order needed materials online.

The Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT) is a component of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).  SAMHSA, a public health agency within the Department of Health and Human Services, is the lead federal agency for improving the quality and availability of substance abuse prevention, addiction treatment and mental health services in the U.S.