Partial Hospitalization Programs (PHP)

A partial hospitalization program, or PHP, is the most intensive level of outpatient addiction treatment short of full residential care. Patients attend treatment during the day — typically 5 to 6 hours per session, 5 days per week — and return home or to sober living housing in the evenings. A PHP delivers most of the clinical services of residential rehab, including individual and group therapy, medication management, psychiatric care, and case management, without requiring patients to live at the facility.

PHP is often the right fit for people who need more support than standard outpatient or intensive outpatient (IOP) can provide, but who do not need 24-hour supervision. It is also commonly used as a step-down from residential rehab or medical detox, giving people a structured transition back to daily life while still providing substantial clinical support.

How PHP Compares to Other Levels of Care

PHP sits in a specific place on the addiction treatment continuum. Inpatient rehab and residential treatment provide 24-hour care and accommodations at the facility, typically for 30 to 90 days. PHP provides nearly the same daily clinical contact but sends patients home at night. IOP provides less total treatment time — typically 9 to 20 hours per week versus PHP's 25 to 30 — and is better suited to people who need to maintain work or school.

For many people, the right path is inpatient or medical detox first, then PHP, then IOP, then standard outpatient, tapering down the intensity of care as recovery stabilizes. Not everyone needs every step, but each level serves a purpose, and starting at the right level is often more important than starting at the highest possible level.

A Typical Day in PHP

PHP schedules vary by program, but most run Monday through Friday from 9 AM to 3 PM or similar daytime hours. A typical day includes several hours of group therapy, a block of individual counseling or psychiatric care, skills-based programming on topics like relapse prevention and coping strategies, and medication management for patients on MAT or psychiatric medications.

Some PHPs include on-site medical care, nutritional support, and specialized therapies like trauma processing, EMDR, or dialectical behavior therapy (DBT). Programs with strong dual diagnosis focus often include more psychiatric care for patients with co-occurring mental health conditions.

Who PHP Helps

PHP is the right level of care for people who need intensive daily clinical support but can safely go home at night. That typically means people with stable housing, a relatively safe home environment, no active suicidality or acute medical issues, and the ability to get to the program daily. PHP is particularly common for people transitioning out of inpatient or residential treatment, and for people whose outpatient treatment has not been enough to achieve stable recovery.

People in active withdrawal from alcohol or benzodiazepines, people in acute psychiatric crisis, or people with unstable housing usually need a higher level of care first, then step down to PHP as they stabilize.

Insurance and Cost

Most private insurance plans cover PHP as a standard addiction treatment benefit, typically requiring prior authorization. Medicaid covers PHP in all 50 states. Medicare covers PHP under Part B for outpatient mental health and substance use services. Because PHP is clinically intensive, insurers often authorize it in blocks of 1 to 4 weeks and require documented clinical need for continued authorization.

Our helpline can do a free benefits verification to help you understand what your plan covers, what your out-of-pocket costs are likely to be, and whether prior authorization is required.