The opioid crisis is now the fentanyl crisis. Treatment has to adapt.
Most opioid use today involves fentanyl — often without the person realizing it. Fentanyl is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine, faster acting, and dramatically less forgiving. The recovery toolkit that worked for heroin and prescription opioids in 2015 doesn’t work the same way in 2026.
Our programs are built for the current reality. That means longer, more careful detox induction. Higher initial doses of buprenorphine when clinically appropriate. Naloxone (Narcan) training for every client and family member. And a clinical team that knows what fentanyl precipitated withdrawal looks like and how to prevent it.
Medication-assisted treatment, explained without dogma
For most people with opioid use disorder, medication-assisted treatment (MAT) is the gold-standard, evidence-based approach. The data on it is overwhelming: MAT cuts overdose deaths roughly in half, improves treatment retention, and supports long-term recovery in ways that abstinence-only approaches often cannot match.
We offer three MAT pathways, and we’ll help you decide which is right for you:
Buprenorphine (Suboxone). A partial opioid agonist taken sublingually or via long-acting injection (Sublocade). Most clients start here. It blunts cravings, prevents withdrawal, and at properly calibrated doses doesn’t produce euphoria. Available on-site through our addiction medicine team.
Methadone. A full agonist requiring daily dispensing through a federally licensed clinic. For some people — particularly those with long, severe opioid histories — methadone provides more stability than buprenorphine. We coordinate with methadone providers in the Aurora and Denver metro.
Naltrexone (Vivitrol). An opioid antagonist administered as a monthly injection. Best suited for people who have completed detox and want a non-opioid medication. Works by blocking the receptors opioids bind to.
Recovery is more than the medication
MAT is one tool. It’s not the program. The other half is the relational, trauma-informed therapy that addresses the why underneath the using — and the day-to-day work of rebuilding a life.
You’ll have individual therapy multiple times a week. Group with people who get it. Family programming. Aftercare planned before you arrive. And the alumni community that keeps you connected long after discharge.
The Naloxone reality
Every client and every family member gets Narcan and the training to use it. This is non-negotiable. Recovery is the goal — staying alive is the prerequisite. We don’t pretend overdose isn’t a possibility; we prepare for it.
What it costs
For Health First Colorado (Medicaid) members, opioid treatment including MAT is fully covered. Medicare and commercial plans cover the full program. We verify benefits at no cost.
If you’re using right now and you’re scared to call — please call anyway. Admissions is confidential, the conversation is free, and we have heard every version of this story.