Download the PDF version of "Using Public Service Announcements to Promote Recovery Month" (573 KB).
Public Service Announcements (PSAs) are television and radio advert- isements aired at no cost and are a great way to promote National Recovery Month: Prevention Works, Treatment is Effective, People Recover (Recovery Month). Every year, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA's) Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT), within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), creates a series of PSAs that encourage individuals in need to seek help and promotes treatment and recovery from substance use and mental disorders.
These PSAs, produced for television and radio, are provided in different lengths, in English and Spanish, and can be tailored with your local information to reach individuals in your community in need of treatment and recovery support services. They also spread the message that prevention works, treatment is effective, and people can and do recover from substance use and mental disorders.
The PSAs can be used year-round to promote your Recovery Month event. A viral video PSA is also available exclusively online to share with your community and can be found on the Recovery Month website, as well on the Recovery Month YouTube and Facebook pages. Additionally, the Recovery Month Community Event Television PSA, developed by Odyssey Networks, can be used by any organization and community throughout the year and highlights Recovery Month events held throughout the United States. In this document, you will find information about the PSAs and helpful tips on how to distribute and promote them.
This year's theme, "Join the Voices for Recovery: Recovery Benefits Everyone," emphasizes that all American's have the opportunity to access provisions within the Affordable Care Act and Mental Health Parity and Addictions Equity Act (MHPAEA), aimed to improve physical and emotional health while ensuring people will receive the care they need at a more reasonable cost. Spreading this message through PSAs aligns SAMHSA's Strategic Initiatives, particularly the goals of increasing public awareness of substance use and mental disorders, health reform implementation, and offering recovery support through an individual, program, and system approach. The Recovery Month PSAs include imperative information, such as on SAMHSA's National Helpline, 1-800-662-HELP (4357), or 1-800-487-4889 (TDD), which provides 24-hour free and confidential information about substance use and mental disorders, prevention, treatment, and recovery referrals in English or Spanish.
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How Do I Distribute the Live-Read PSAs Scripts?
Live-read radio scripts are a type of PSA that can be distributed to radio stations to be read by disc jockeys (DJs). You can alter the scripts to fit your community's needs and focus on issues relating to substance use and mental disorders, treatment, and recovery. The two 30-second and two 15-second radio PSA scripts included in this document can be hand delivered, emailed, faxed, or mailed to radio stations. It's essential to contact the radio stations to see how they prefer to receive the scripts. At larger stations, there may be an individual, or a person in charge of public campaigns, to contact directly.
Make sure to include a cover letter when sending the live-read PSAs. You can simply modify the pitch letter located in the "Working with the Media" document in this toolkit. Explain the Recovery Month campaign, the importance of the message that recovery is possible, and your contact information. To focus the message on your community, include information about local substance use and mental disorders and recovery initiatives. Below you will find some resources to help localize your cover letter and drive home the importance of recovery to a station's listeners.
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How are the Pre-Recorded PSAs Distributed?
SAMHSA's produced television and radio PSAs are distributed to more than 1,000 television and 3,000 radio stations nationwide and are available in both English and Spanish. The television PSAs are available in 30- and 20/15-second lengths, and the radio PSAs are available in 30- and 20-second lengths. If your local radio or television station has not received a Recovery Month PSA, you can view electronic copies online in the "Multimedia" section of the Recovery Month website at http://www.recoverymonth.gov. Copies are available by calling 617-520-2567 or emailing recoverymonth@samhsa.hhs.gov.
The Affordable Care Act gives Americans more freedom and control over their health care, as well as new benefits that ensure people will receive the care they need at a more reasonable cost. New provisions through the law will prevent insurance companies from denying coverage due to a pre-existing condition for children starting in 2011, and for adults in 2014. Refer to the "Fast Facts About Health Reform, Substance Use and Mental Disorders, Treatment, and Recovery" document in this toolkit for more information.
These pre-recorded PSAs can be localized to add your community information. Contact recoverymonth@samhsa.hhs.gov for more information about how to tailor the open-ended versions of the Recovery Month PSAs. Another option is to work with a local production company to insert supplementary information, such as a logo, website, or phone number. The PSAs also provide more information about the "Join the Voices for Recovery: Recovery Benefits Everyone," theme and how public awareness will increase access for those in need of essential substance use and mental health treatment and recovery support services, including behavioral health treatment. If you chose to add local information, make sure you contact your local resources so they can prepare for a potential increase in inquiries.
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To promote the Recovery Month television and radio PSAs, call local television and radio stations, introduce yourself and explain why Recovery Month PSAs are important to play in your area. To find your local stations' contact information, do an online search or use the phonebook. Another easy way to promote the PSAs is to play them on a large screen television or on a sound system for radio in both English and Spanish at your Recovery Month event.
Also, email the PSAs to all your Recovery Month supporters, asking them to forward the message on to anyone they know who may find them useful. It's important to send all necessary information in that email, including a cover letter explaining the PSA's importance, and your contact information. Post a link on your website to the PSAs, which can be found on the Recovery Month website, Facebook page, and YouTube channel. Alternatively, embed them within your own website. Typically you will see a embed code near the video to copy and paste into your website. Email recoverymonth@samhsa.hhs.gov to reach the site's webmaster if there is no code, or if you have any other questions.
Below you can find live-read PSA scripts promoting Recovery Month. Your local radio station can add their personal touch to these scripts by having one of their station's most popular radio personalities or a community leader who may be visiting the station read them live.
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Additional Recovery Month Resources
For further information on Recovery Month, substance use and mental disorders, treatment and recovery, use the following resources:
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SAMHSA's National Helpline, 1-800-662-HELP (4357) or 1-800-487-4889 (TDD) – Provides 24-hour free and confidential information about substance use and mental disorders, prevention, treatment, and recovery referrals in English or Spanish.
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SAMHSA's "Find Substance Abuse and Mental Health Treatment" Website – Contains information about treatment options and special services located in your area.
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SAMHSA's "Considerations for the Provision of E-Therapy" Report – Shares extensive information on the benefits, issues, and success of e-therapy.
- The Recovery Month Website – Contains all the materials from this toolkit and a wide variety of relevant resources.
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SAMHSA's ADS Center – Provides information and assistance to develop successful efforts to counteract prejudice and discrimination and promote social inclusion.
Inclusion of websites and resources in this document and on the Recovery Month website does not constitute official endorsement by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services or the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
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