Substance Abuse Treatment Participation and Employment Outcomes for Public Disability Beneficiaries with Substance Use Disorders

Quantitative research methods are used to examine the interaction among public disability benefit receipt, substance abuse, participation in substance abuse treatment, and employment among US adults. Using cross-sectional data from the 2002 and 2003 Survey on Drug Abuse and Health, the results demonstrate that disability beneficiaries who have substance use disorders are more likely to access treatment than persons with substance use disorders who are not beneficiaries. Results could not confirm, however, that those beneficiaries who access treatment are more likely to return to employment than those who do not access treatment.