American Addiction Centers

American healthcare facilities and services company

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American Addiction Centers Inc.Company type| Private

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Industry| Healthcare
Founded| 2004
Headquarters| Brentwood, Tennessee, U.S.

Area served

| United States

Key people

* Andrew McWilliams (CEO)[1]
* Dr. Lawrence Weinstein (CMO)[2]

American Addiction Centers (AAC) is a Brentwood, Tennessee–based, publicly traded for-profit addiction treatment chain.[3]

The company delivers addiction treatment services in residential and outpatient facilities, as well as provides drug testing and diagnostic laboratory services. Andrew McWilliams is the current CEO of AAC and Mark Calarco is the CEO of its laboratory division.[4][5]

## History

[edit]

American Addiction Centers was co-founded in 2004 by Michael Cartwright (then CEO).[6] In October 2014, the company went from privately held to public, becoming the first publicly traded addiction treatment provider in the U.S.[citation needed]

In December 2014, American Addiction Centers made its first acquisition as a public company, taking over Recovery First Inc., a Florida-based substance use disorder and rehab services company.[7] By 2015, American Addiction Centers ran 8 facilities in 6 states after acquiring several sites in California, New Jersey, Rhode Island and Mississippi.[8][9] Among the company's acquisitions in 2015 were also two digital marketing firms focused on publishing online content on substance use disorders – Referral Solutions Group and Taj Media;[10][11] and Aliso Viejo–based Laguna Treatment Hospital's building for $13.5 million.[12]

In 2015, the company launched a Behavioral Health Academic Scholarship Program, providing scholarship funds to college students pursuing careers in addiction-related fields.[13][14]

In 2017, AAC acquired AdCare, a New England–based provider of addiction treatment, for $85 million.[15]

In 2019, AAC received three warnings from the New York Stock Exchange, risking being delisted. The third warning was issued after AAC stock traded below $1 for at least 30 trading days.[16]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, AAC provided coronavirus testing for its patients and the local Tennessee community through its in-house lab to prevent infections.[17][18] It also launched telehealth services on its mobile application and monitored the vitals of an in-house patient through their EarlySense technology and toxicology testing as a part of their ongoing treatment program. In late 2020, the company underwent a financial restructuring.[19][20] In June 2020, it sought Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.[21]

## Locations

[edit]

By 2018, American Addiction Centers was operating 12 residential treatment centers and 18 outpatient facilities, and reported a revenue of almost $296 million.[22][23]

As of December 2020, AAC operates 26 locations in eight states of the U.S.

In June 2023, Sunrise House was closed.

## Research

[edit]

American Addiction Centers conducts studies and research through its subsidiaries. In 2018, the center conducted patient outcome studies with Centerstone Research Institute.[24] In 2020, they conducted a study on people's alcohol consumption pattern during the COVID-19 pandemic, and a research on substance use disorder likelihood in the LGBTQ+ community.[25][26] The company also conducted other alcohol-related surveys and studies during the pandemic.[27]

## Controversy

[edit]

In 2018, a California jury issued a verdict against AAC, awarding $7 million to the family of a patient who committed suicide in a AAC facility and died 20 hours after his arrival.[28]

According to an investigation by Mother Jones, centers managed by AAC often leave patients unattended, which led to some patient deaths and lawsuits. AAC denies it and claims that its death rate is the lowest in the industry.[3]

In May 2019, AAC filed a defamation lawsuit against the National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers (NAATP).[29] The lawsuit was dismissed in late 2021.[30]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "AAC Holdings Announces Appointment of Andrew McWilliams to CEO as Michael Cartwright Focuses on Role as Chairman of the Board". 15 January 2020. Retrieved 27 February 2021.
2. ^ Lombaerde, Geert De. "AAC hires Humana veteran to be CMO".
3. ^ a b Lurie, Julia (22 April 2019). "America's only publicly traded addiction treatment chain makes millions off patients. What could go wrong?". Mother Jones. Retrieved 4 October 2019.
4. ^ "AAC hires Humana veteran to be CMO". Nashville Post. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
5. ^ "AAC names CEO of labs division". Nashville Post. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
6. ^ "Bloomberg - American Addiction Centers Inc". Bloomberg. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
7. ^ "AAC Holdings buys Florida substance abuse provider". Nashville Post. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
8. ^ "American Addiction Centers Goes Public". Mitchell MCN. 2015-02-05. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
9. ^ "AAC buys in Mississippi". Nashville Post. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
10. ^ Kubis, Emily. "AAC acquires online publisher, marketing company for $60M". Nashville Post. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
11. ^ Miller, Julie (July 6, 2015). "American Addiction Centers buys two digital marketing firms | Psychiatry & Behavioral Health Learning Network". Psych Congress. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
12. ^ "Rehab Hospital Opens in Aliso Viejo". www.ocbj.com. 17 June 2016. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
13. ^ "AAC Announces Partnership with NFL Alumni to Offer Scholarships". Psychiatry & Behavioral Health Learning Network. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
14. ^ Shulman, Robyn (2016-04-03). "Scholarship Program $10,000-American Addiction Centers Announces 2016 Behavioral Health Academic". `{{cite journal}}`: Cite journal requires `|journal=` (help)
15. ^ "AdCare Sold To Tennessee-Based Addiction Treatment Company". Worcester, MA Patch. 2017-09-19. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
16. ^ Blois, Matt (10 July 2019). "AAC receives third warning from NASDAQ". Nashville Post. Retrieved 4 October 2019.
17. ^ "Addiction Labs Offers COVID-19 Testing to the Community and On-site at Middle Tennessee Businesses and Organizations". Nashville Medical News. 2020-07-22. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
18. ^ "American Addiction Centers Launches Onsite COVID-19 Testing". EMS World. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
19. ^ Bryant, Bailey (2020-02-20). "After Years of Playing Defense, AAC Preps 2020 Offensive Strategy". Behavioral Health Business. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
20. ^ Bryant, Bailey (2020-09-11). "AAC Pivots Marketing Strategy, Gets Personal Amid Pandemic". Behavioral Health Business. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
21. ^ Fitzgerald, Patrick (June 20, 2020). "American Addiction Centers Files for Bankruptcy". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on August 18, 2023. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
22. ^ Silver, Jeff (2018-03-15). "Kirk Manz's Mission to End Drug Abuse at American Addiction Centers". American Healthcare Leader. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
23. ^ Elflein, John (Jul 10, 2019). "American Addiction Centers' annual revenue from 2011 to 2018 (in 1,000 U.S. dollars)". Statista. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
24. ^ TN; States 877-467-3123, 37228 United. "American Addiction Centers' Patient Outcome Findings". Centerstone. Retrieved 2021-02-27.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
25. ^ "American Addiction Centers' new ad campaign highlights ongoing prevalence of overdose deaths". www.beckershospitalreview.com. 24 August 2020. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
26. ^ Kowalick, Claire. "Survey: Singles drinking more during COVID lockdown". Times Record News. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
27. ^ mHealthIntelligence (2020-10-01). "Amid Rising Substance Abuse Rates, Treatment Centers Turn to Telehealth". mHealthIntelligence. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
28. ^ Walser, Adam (6 February 2018). "Jury holds drug rehab responsible for suicide". WFTS. Retrieved 4 October 2019.
29. ^ Stinnett, Joel. "Brentwood company files multimillion-dollar lawsuit against national trade organization". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
30. ^ Coward, Kyle (2022-02-03). "American Addiction Centers Taps Former Gateway Foundation Executive as New CEO". Behavioral Health Business. Retrieved 2023-12-20.

## External links

[edit]

* Official website
* Digital Lifeline For Addiction Treatment Providers