Free Online Tool Bolsters Efforts to Help Individuals Find Trusted and High-Quality Addiction Treatment Options Across New Jersey

July 6, 2022

(TRENTON) – New Jersey Human Services Commissioner Sarah Adelman announced today that New Jersey has launched a free, confidential, first-of-its-kind on-line tool to connect New Jerseyans in need with appropriate addiction treatment care and deliver user-friendly information about the quality of available programs. 

ATLAS®, or Addiction Treatment Locator, Assessment, and Standards Platform, at www.TreatmentATLAS.org, offers an easy-to-use dashboard to allow individuals with substance use disorder and their loved ones to search for and compare participating programs using criteria such as location, services offered, and insurance accepted so they can find the best treatment for their unique needs.

ATLAS was created by Shatterproof, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to reversing the addiction crisis in America. ATLAS has been made possible in New Jersey through a partnership with Human Services and funding from Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey.

ATLAS evaluates addiction treatment programs’ use of evidence-based best practices and makes this information available to the public on its platform. Best practices are based on the Shatterproof National Principles of Care, which are evidence-based standards derived from the Surgeon General’s Report on Addiction, using data gathered through a combination of validated sources.

“It’s vital to empower individuals and families confronting substance use disorder and help them make informed decisions,” Commissioner Adelman said. “This is yet another tool in our collective work to make addiction treatment as accessible as possible so individuals and families can get the help they need – because treatment works and recovery is attainable. Our goal, always, is to save lives. This is another way to do so.”

ATLAS includes an assessment to help individuals understand the appropriate level of care they need. The platform also gathers and displays anonymous feedback from patients on their experiences at facilities. This feedback helps to inform others’ care decisions. Anyone who has received treatment from a facility in New Jersey can visit www.TreatmentATLAS.org to search for the facility and leave a patient review.

ATLAS lists New Jersey addiction treatment facilities for various types of substance use disorder, including alcohol and opioid use disorder.

“During a time when our nation’s addiction crisis is tragically at an all-time high and access to quality treatment is often hard to find, ATLAS is a critical new resource. When my son Brian needed addiction treatment, my family agonized trying to find him the right care. It was impossible to know who to trust,” Shatterproof Founder and CEO Gary Mendell said. “ATLAS is a sea change in the addiction world. It will give those in need and their families the transparent and trustworthy information my family never had and will help put more people on the path to recovery.”

“Horizon is thrilled to be able to provide the funding needed to bring Shatterproof’s ATLAS to New Jersey,” said Suzanne Kunis, Vice President of Behavioral Health for Horizon BCBSNJ. “No one in crisis, dealing with substance use disorders, or worse, an overdose, should have to hope they guess right to find good care.  The ATLAS Quality Measurement System gives New Jerseyans looking for treatment options the same kind of evidence-based quality and outcomes information they are used to getting about primary care doctors, specialists, and acute care hospitals. This is long overdue.  We appreciate the providers who have joined us so far in sending a clear message that we are united here in New Jersey in our commitment to evidence-based treatment and to giving people meaningful information that helps them choose the right program and treatment partner.”

ATLAS builds on existing efforts by New Jersey to connect individuals and families to treatment through the 1-844-ReachNJ helpline.

ReachNJ is a 24-hour-a-day, 7 day-a-week addiction hotline where people who have substance use disorders (SUD) or friends and family of people with SUD can get immediate assistance and support from live, New Jersey-based, trained addiction counselors. An individual who calls the toll-free number will reach a live staff member who will help connect them to treatment, regardless of insurance status.

ATLAS is fully available in English and Spanish and has several unique features including:

• Feedback from other patients once a minimum threshold of 20 responses for the facility is met, updated every 24 hours;
• An expert-approved Addiction Treatment Needs Assessment, created in collaboration with the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) and OpenBeds, to help guide the treatment search based on the individual’s needs and severity;
• The ability to search and filter using criteria such as location, services offered and insurance accepted, as well as the opportunity to compare facilities.