Benchmarking unit costs of drug treatment
In 2007/08 there is £398 million in central government funding available to distribute to local partnerships to fund drug and alcohol treatment services.
The Audit Commission has recently worked with the National Treatment Agency (NTA) to analyse the unit costs of drug treatment services across the UK.
Total reported spend on services in 2005/06 was £361.5 million and there were 273,000 treatment places available. The cost per treatment place ranges massively.
The significant regional variations in cost can't be explained purely by market forces. The average cost per treatment place ranges from £730 in the Eastern region to nearly £2,400 in the North East. The differences are marked and surprising.
There is some correlation between unit cost and the number of treatment places available. Those regions with a higher number of treatment places have lower unit costs. This suggests some economies of scale, different approaches to treatment or simply the effects of greater supply. The variations in unit costs suggest that allocation of resources may not always have matched well with need.
As comparative data in this area has not previously been available, it is likely that providers won't have had an opportunity to look at costs in any detail. The Audit Commission has recently sent a report to each service provider and commissioning Drug Action Team. The data packs show unit costs per treatment place, hour session, contact/commencement, or completion. Costs are disaggregated to 'tier' level, for example assessment and care management, or for an individual treatment modality such as Specialist Methadone Detoxification (tier 3).
Providers should work with commissioners to understand how their unit cost per treatment place compares with both the regional and national averages and the reasons for any apparent variation.