Area Substance Abuse Council

About Area Substance Abuse Council

Area Substance Abuse Council (ASAC) is a nonprofit network serving Anamosa and the surrounding region, with 14 locations across seven Eastern Iowa counties that offer substance use prevention, treatment, and recovery support. They treat substance use disorders and problem gambling, and their approach centers on individualized care, harm reduction, education, and the lived experience of people in recovery. Across the network, levels of care include standard outpatient, intensive outpatient, partial hospitalization or day treatment, and residential treatment, along with medication-assisted treatment. Every new patient starts with an assessment, and a counselor then reviews which options fit their needs.

Outpatient care is self-paced, with group sessions scheduled throughout the week so people can keep working and stay close to family, while the partial hospitalization program in Dubuque and Clinton combines medical care and counseling for several hours a day. ASAC’s residential homes in Cedar Rapids and Clinton are separated by gender and include programs where women can stay with their children, including options for pregnant women. Residents take part in individual counseling and group work on stress management, communication, decision-making, and coping skills, and length of stay depends on each person’s progress. Every patient is matched with a peer recovery coach who has been through treatment, and after treatment ASAC offers care navigation for childcare, transportation, housing, and employment, as well as income-based transitional apartments for families.