According to a new study from Research Triangle Institute, adding Substance Use Disorder (SUD) services to Medicare would almost neutralize Medicare costs and SUD treatment costs. SUD services include "residential programs, intensive outpatient programs, and licensed and certified counselors."

In 2020, about 3% of Medicare beneficiaries (1.7 million people) had SUDs. Only 11% of these beneficiaries received treatment. The main reason people did not receive treatment was because of a lack of SUD insurance coverage. Medicare does not cover all SUD services, more specifically, Medicare does not cover "intensive outpatient, partial hospitalization, specialty addiction outpatient clinics, and residential addiction programs, as well as by licensed professional counselors, certified addiction counselors, and peers." Medicare is not included in the Mental Health Parity and the Addiction Equity Act, therefore, the provider doesn't have to offer these services.