UnitedHealthcare for Addiction Treatment in North Carolina

North Carolina is an interesting, exciting state with a rich history, fascinating staples, and unique facts. With the city of Raleigh as its capital, North Carolina had a population of around 10,698,973 people in 2022. ² The Tar Heel State is the birthplace of Pepsi-Cola, and it’s where the Wright brothers completed their first flight in Kitty Hawk. It’s also where Babe Ruth hit his first professional home run. ³

As a resident of North Carolina, you may find yourself in need of addiction treatment at some point of time in your life. If that’s the case, you’re not alone. Statistics show that among North Carolina residents age 12 and older: ⁴

• 14% have used marijuana.
• 5% have misused prescription pain relievers.

UnitedHealthcare (UHC) is a global health insurance company that offers health benefit programs and health insurance plans for people of all ages and lifestyles.¹ It partners with more than 1.3 million physicians and care professionals and 6,500 hospitals and other care facilities nationwide, helping its members find and receive the right care at the right time.¹ Addiction treatment coverage is a provision that is included in UHC health insurance plans. However, the level and amount of coverage depend on the health insurance plan you choose.

UHC coverage plans are designed to meet various needs. They are:⁵

• UHC Choice Open Plan. Under this plan, employees must receive care from network providers for their benefits to be covered. Out-of-network coverage is for emergency services only, though.
• UHC Choice Plus. You can choose from any provider in the network, and coverage outside of the Choice Plus network can be expected at a lower benefit level.
• UHC PPO. You can utilize any hospital, doctor, clinic, or healthcare facility in the national network. However, using outside networks will cost you more money.

UHC also offers the following coverage options:

• Supplemental insurance plans. These plans, which are underwritten by Golden Rule Insurance Company, are available to provide additional coverage to round out your other health insurance coverage.
• Medicare plans. This is a type of individual health insurance plan that is offered to U.S. citizens and other eligible individuals based on disability, age, and qualifying medical condition.
• Medicaid plans. This health insurance plan is available to those with low income such as people who are pregnant, children, older people, or people with disabilities.
• Employer plans. These plans are employer-sponsored and contain different benefits packages and health plans.

UnitedHealthcare covers rehabilitation services in North Carolina. Substance use treatment falls under the umbrella of behavioral health services at UHC.⁶ Many rehabilitation centers and facilities accept this insurance coverage for various treatment levels. UHC also covers either the partial or full cost of rehabilitation based on the type of plan you have and the level of coverage within that plan.

UnitedHealthcare will at least partially or fully cover inpatient rehabilitation in North Carolina. It should also be noted that drug and alcohol treatment as well as detox and outpatient programs are covered by UnitedHealthcare plans. To find out more about the different programs that can be covered and what each program entails, you can click the following links below:

• Detox
• Inpatient
• Outpatient

The following list contains additional types of addiction programs in North Carolina that are covered by UHC:

• Couple’s treatment. Under this type of treatment, couples who are struggling with addiction can receive help at the same time.
• Rehabilitation for Veterans. This type of treatment is tailored to Veterans who struggle with addiction problems.
• Aftercare. This treatment typically follows a period of addiction-related care.

Multiple types of therapies can be used in addiction treatment. These types of therapies are listed below, and you can click each link to find more information:

• Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT)
• Contingency management (CM)
• Rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT)
• Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT)
• Motivational interviewing
• Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR)
• Matrix model
• Family therapy

Other health insurance companies may cover addiction rehabilitation to some degree as well. These insurances pages are linked below:

• Aetna
• Humana Health
• Kaiser Permanente
• Blue Cross Blue Shield

The options to pay for addiction treatment in North Carolina varies. To learn more about payment options, click here. If you plan to pay for treatment without insurance (or out of pocket), click here..

You may incur additional costs while utilizing UHC. We have more information about that here.

State-funded programs and free rehabilitation centers are also available, and you can find more information about them below:

• State-funded programs
• Free drug rehabilitation centers

If you are ready to find treatment options for yourself or a loved one, get started right now with our free rehab locator tool. Find addiction treatment facilities that take insurance, inpatient rehabs, outpatient rehab programs, and more.

1. UnitedHealthcare. (n.d.). About us.
2. Britannica. (n.d.). North Carolina: Facts & stats.
3. Destguides. (2023, January). 75 interesting facts about North Carolina you should know.
4. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (n.d.). Behavioral health barometer North Carolina, volume 6.
5. UnitedHealthcare. (n.d.). Medical plans.
6. UnitedHealthcare. (n.d.). UnitedHealthcare Community Plan.