Did macro structural effects of the Great Recession impact substance abuse outpatient treatment completion rates for minorities?

Whereas studies have documented health disparities among ethnic minorities occasioned by poor access and bias in healthcare at local levels, there has been little discussion linking globalization impacts to the health outcomes of ethnic minorities. Specifically, research focused on ethnic minorities seeking treatment for substance abuse. The great recession of the past decade in the United States (2008-2010), provides an adequate backdrop against which the completion of substance abuse treatments among minorities can be linked to global forces whose effects on their social realities can be estimated. Data from the Treatment Episode Datasets–Discharge (TEDS-D) representing outpatient substance abuse treatment centers across the United States is used. All treatment users were classified by race. We use multivariate logistic regression to estimate the effect of the great recession by weighing whether racial-ethnic differences, gender and region influence discharge completion rates. We find that, ethnic minorities are less likely to access substance abuse treatment, and less likely to complete substance abuse treatment. The regional analysis gives insight into the broader impacts of the recession’s effect when we find that individuals from the South were generally less likely to complete discharge services when all regions are considered. Overall, primary substance in use, age, and education, inspired by global contexts, invariably explain the rates of successful completion. We conclude that outpatient completion rates for substance abuse are impacted negatively by macro processes such the great recession.