What is a Halfway House? Benefits, Rules and Cost

Currently, there are more than 500 halfway houses in the United States. More than 150 of those halfway houses have government contracts to maintain their operations. On any given day, there can be as many as 50,000 total residents; approximately 87% of the residents are male and 13% are female. The average age range is twenty-one https://ecosoberhouse.com/ and older, as other facilities are better equipped for juvenile treatment. The cost of living in a halfway house is typically covered by insurance, government funding, or the resident’s own funds. There are also some halfway houses that offer financial assistance to residents who cannot afford to pay the full cost of housing.

The duration of the stay is typically determined by the individual’s progress and stability in their recovery and how easily they will be able to reintegrate back into their everyday lives. Halfway houses typically require their residents to comply with certain rules and regulations. These rules may include curfews, routine drug and alcohol testing and searches, playing an active and productive role in the house, and restrictions on visitors or guests. A halfway house is where people can live while transitioning from one stage to another.

What Happens if Someone Violates Halfway House Rules?

They are meant for reintegration of persons who have been recently released from prison or continuous[clarification needed] mental institutionalization. The housing conditions, I was told, would be horrible in the halfway house. I was told to expect that the halfway house would be some of the worst time that I served, and I was scheduled to serve my final year inside of a halfway house. Some facilities require a minimum number of days of sobriety from substance abuse, but many will work with you to determine if you’re a good fit.

They may also offer mental health counseling, financial training, and help finding housing after prison. A halfway house is a residential facility designed to help people transition into independent living. They were initially developed as drug-free living environments for people who had halfway house activity completed residential treatment. These houses were meant to be “halfway” points between the restrictive structure of rehab and the complete independence of home. The cost of residing in a halfway house can vary depending on factors such as location, amenities, and services offered.

Can Family Members Visit Someone in a Halfway House?

Some sober-living homes have a base rate with additional costs for added services. When you’re looking for a sober recovery home, be sure to ask what’s included in the monthly rate and what is extra. Some examples of additional services may include transportation to appointments, recovery coaching, meals and gym memberships. But when considering some of the services offered, make sure they’re services that help support your sobriety.

The rules of a halfway house are designed to provide structure and accountability to help those in recovery achieve and maintain sobriety and to ensure the safety and well-being of all residents. These woeful inadequacies are indicative of a larger systemic failure of halfway house oversight that often results in deeply problematic conditions for residents. Too often, audits are only conducted after journalists report on the ways specific halfway houses are failing residents, rather than government correctional agencies doing proper oversight on their own. In federal RRCs, staff are expected to supervise and monitor individuals in their facilities, maintaining close data-sharing relationships with law enforcement. Disciplinary procedure for violating rules can result in the loss of good conduct time credits, or being sent back to prison or jail, sometimes without a hearing.

Release Outcome Series – Halfway House Research

Thus, in a society where citizens are harshly punitive with respect to crime but frugal with their tax dollars when it comes to supporting correctional institutions, residential correctional programs are a popular option. In certain areas, a halfway house is much different from a recovery house or sober house. In these areas, a drug and alcohol halfway house is licensed by the Department of Health and has staff coverage 24 hours a day. Within a few days, I received my first pass to leave the halfway house and walk to the DMV. Since I had a job waiting for me upon my release from prison, four days after I checked into the halfway house, a staff member authorized me to go to work. Whereas only one week previously I was being reprimanded for chewing gum in prison, suddenly I was free to navigate my way around the magnificent streets of San Francisco.

They are defined as safe, supervised, and structured environments that provide assistance to inmates who will be released from incarceration soon. The term ‚“halfway“‚ implies that the house is a stopping point or a respite on the journey to healing. Often, halfway houses are the middle ground between crime or addiction and recovery or reentry into society. The definition of a halfway house is a community residential dwelling that is a place for people to live while they are recovering from various difficulties in their lives. The term ‚“halfway house“‚ Before the early 19th century, both the United States and Europe adopted swift and applicable punishment to discourage people from breaking the law.