There are millions of individuals in the United States who are suffering from addiction, but can’t leave their lives behind to get treatment. Rather they keep on living with the life damaging disease of addiction, and for concern of losing their job, letting their loved ones down, or losing their house; they don’t ever get the assistance they require. Are you thinking about going to rehab for a drug or alcohol addiction, but basing your choice on what the repercussions at work would be? You may qualify to take a leave of absence from work to go to rehab with the Family and Medical Leave Act. Here at AION Recovery, we work hard to make sure you are covering all aspects of your treatment, from family, to workplace. Don’t get discouraged, we can help.

What Is the Family Medical Leave Act?

The Family Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) is a federal law that mandates employers to offer protected employees with a leave of absence for up to 12 weeks in a 12-month time frame for specific medical and family reasons. These medical factors can be everything from childbirth, to individual medical emergencies, or taking care of a family member with a severe health problem.

Am I Qualified for Family and Medical Leave Act?

Eligibility for a leave of absence secured by FMLA is contingent on many various factors, and not everybody will be safeguarded. There are specific groups of individuals who will be secured no matter what, these include: State, local and Federal workplaces, and community education agencies (schools). For the rest of the populace, to be qualified for FMLA leave, an employee needs to work for a covered employer and:

• Have worked for that employer for at least 12 months.
• Have worked at least 1,250 hours during the 12 months prior to the start of the FMLA leave.
• Work at a location where at least 50 employees are employed at the location or within 75 miles of the establishment.

Do I Still Get Compensated While in Rehab?

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) does not guarantee that an employee gets paid when in rehab, that’s up to the employer, but odds are they will not pay you. The point of FMLA is that an individual retains their job, or will be reinstated after rehab for a comparable job with equivalent pay. So ultimately this act “provides specific employees with up to 12 workweeks of unpaid, job-protected leave a year, and calls for group health benefits to be preserved during the leave as if employees continued to do the job instead of taking leave” (United States Department of Labor).

Can My Company Fire Me for Going to Rehab?

If you plan to go to rehab safeguarded by the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), you should give your employer prior notice. If you forget to do so, you will no longer be secured, and potentially face termination from your career. So, the best bet is to give your workplace an adequate notice, but these kinds of things can come out of thin air, and regardless if drug rehab is court ordered or not it can happen as a shock.

In some situations, an individual can be terminated from a job for going to rehab, nevertheless an employer cannot fire an individual who has chosen to use FMLA to go to treatment. “If, however, the employer has an established protocol, applied in a nondiscriminatory method that has been corresponded to all employees, that offers that under specific situations, including enlisting in a substance abuse plan, an employee may be fired for substance abuse, pursuant to that regulation an employee may be terminated whether or not the employee is currently taking FMLA leave” (U.S. Department of Labor).

Why Would Addiction Treatment Be Safeguarded?

So why would an addiction or a substance use condition be protected by the government? There are a lot of purposes that people are secured, and first of all the National Institute on Drug Abuse specifies that “drug addiction is a complicated disease, and stopping usually takes more than good intentions or a solid will. Drugs alter the brain in ways that make stopping very difficult, even for individuals who want to. Thankfully, specialists know more than ever about how drugs impact the brain and have discovered treatments that can assist individuals recover from drug addiction and lead successful lifestyles.”.

Substance use disorders are when an individual’s drug abuse leads to unfavorable repercussions at home, in school, or in the workplace. A lot of people are usually well intended, and can be the finest of employees or friends, but an addiction leads them to do things they wouldn’t typically do. In essence; individuals are secured, not only because they’re good people, but because addictions are classified as diseases. There is optimism for returning to work to continue on as a resource to the business.

Is Addiction Considered a Severe Health Condition?

Addiction and substance abuse are not always guarded by FMLA, even though they are identified as disease and disorder and can certainly be a major health condition. This typically depends on a company’s drug and alcohol policy. As explaining by the United States Department of Labor, “FMLA leave may only be taken for substance abuse treatment provided by a health care provider or by a provider of health care services on referral by a health care provider. Absence because of the employee’s use of the substance, rather than for treatment, does not qualify for FMLA leave.”.

Using the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to Go to Rehab Does Not Qualify.

Additionally, “an employee may also take FMLA leave to care for a covered family member who is acquiring treatment for substance abuse. The company may not take action against an employee who is offering care for a covered family member obtaining treatment for substance abuse.”.

Frequently Abused Drugs.

Typically, most drugs can trigger an addiction which may call for treatment. Some of the addictions that are most frequently treated in rehab centers are alcohol, cocaine, PCP, heroin, prescription opioids, crystal meth, ecstasy, prescription sedatives, and much more. Choosing to go to rehab can be a challenging decision and you’re likely to have a lot of concerns.

Routinely Asked Issues About Rehab.

If you’re like a lot of men and women, you want solutions before jumping head first into a financial commitment. That’s precisely what going to rehab is, an investment in your potential, in your recovery, and in your life. Some of the most frequently asked questions that we can help you identify answers for are:

• Is detoxification usually required before therapy?
• What can I anticipate from treatment?
• How do I describe to my employer that I’m going to rehab?
• How can I pay the bills when I’m in rehab?
• Is rehab paid for by health insurance?
• How do I get a loved one into rehab?

Locating A Rehab Center That’s Ideal for Me.

For More Information, Call us now at 888-811-2879. AION Recovery is standing by 24/7 to help guide you through this complicated process. You are not alone, and we have answers!

There are a lot of challenges that we all run into in life, and most of us never pictured drug and alcohol addiction would be one of them. You’re definitely not alone, and we’re here to help you get through it. If you have been putting off going to rehab for concern of forfeiting your job, you might be safeguarded. It never hurts to talk to somebody from your Human Resources Department for private and professional guidance.