Acadia Healthcare Is Recognized for the High Quality of Its Services

America’s behavioral health crisis affects nearly 60 million adults, and one in five adolescents now experiences a major depressive episode. Acadia Healthcare has emerged as a leader in addressing this crisis, both in scale and in quality of care. Recent recognition across multiple prestigious platforms underscores the company’s commitment to excellence as it works to address critical health care gaps nationwide.

Newsweek Recognition Across Multiple Categories

Acadia Healthcare’s commitment to quality earned it placement on several of Newsweek’s “best of” lists in 2024. The company was named to Newsweek’s “World’s Most Trustworthy Companies” list, which evaluates organizations based on customer trust, investor trust, and employee trust and names 60 top firms.

Seven facilities within Acadia’s network were featured in Newsweek’s “Most Addiction Treatment Centers 2024″ list. These recognized centers span five states: Sierra Tucson in Arizona; Bayside Marin Treatment Center and Azure Acres Recovery Center in California; Wilmington Treatment Center in North Carolina; Pocono Mountain Recovery Center and Bradford Recovery Center in Pennsylvania; and Mirror Lake in Tennessee.

The company has also been recognized for its workplace environment, earning spots on Newsweek’s “America’s Greatest Workplaces for Diversity 2025,” “America’s Greatest Workplaces for LGBTQ+ 2024,” and “America’s Greatest Workplaces for Job Starters 2024” lists. These accolades reflect Acadia’s commitment to fostering an inclusive environment that supports diverse employees and nurtures emerging talent.

Leadership and Technological Excellence

Acadia’s technological advancement efforts received recognition when Chief Information Officer Laura Groschen was honored with the Tennessee Orbie Award in the Enterprise category. The Orbie Awards highlight CIOs who demonstrate excellence in technology leadership, innovation, and business strategy.

This recognition reflects Acadia’s investment in technological infrastructure to enhance health care delivery. The company has invested approximately $100 million in technology improvements to enhance patient care and safety, including electronic medical records systems, remote patient monitoring capabilities, and cloud-based performance improvement software.

Its technological focus earned further acknowledgment when North Highland’s Healthcare Team, in collaboration with Acadia Healthcare, received the Silver Award at the Industry Eagle Awards for their implementation of an Electronic Medical Records system.

Accreditation and Quality Standards

Acadia’s commitment to quality is formalized through its affiliations with recognized accrediting bodies. The company’s Specialty Service Line received the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) International Aspire to Excellence Accreditation in 2024, signifying adherence to rigorous standards in service delivery and a commitment to continuous improvement.

For its opioid treatment programs, Acadia’s network of affiliated facilities have [CF1] achieved a “99%+ quality score across each of CARF’s 13 measures.” Additionally, the company’s CTCs have shown strong clinical outcomes, with 72% negative drug tests for illicit opioid use over a five-year period.

Recognition in Context: Addressing America’s Mental Health Crisis

These accolades take on greater significance against the backdrop of America’s behavioral health crisis. Quality care delivery is both essential and challenging. According to Mental Health America’s “State of Mental Health in America” report, nearly 6 million adults with mental illness lack insurance and over 122 million Americans live in mental health workforce shortage areas.

The recognition of Acadia’s affiliated addiction treatment centers is particularly relevant given the scale of the substance use crisis, which according to MHA’s report, affects more than 45 million adults and 2.3 million youth nationwide.

The opioid epidemic represents a particularly acute aspect of this crisis. In 2024, opioid-related deaths claimed 87,000 lives — a significant increase from 49,860 deaths in 2019.  Approximately 76% of the almost 108,000 drug overdose deaths in 2022 involved an opioid.

In this context, Acadia’s recognized excellence in addiction treatment reflects its crucial role in addressing one of America’s most pressing public health challenges.

Expanding with Quality at the Forefront

The various recognitions of Acadia’s quality comes as they also strive to meet the increasing needs of our country. In 2024 alone, Acadia’s affiliated network added approximately 1,300 new beds to underserved areas, with plans to construct over 2,000 additional beds in the next two years.

Acadia’s quality recognitions complement its growth initiatives, which include the recent openings of West Pines Behavioral Health in Colorado, Coachella Valley Behavioral Health in California, Agave Ridge Behavioral Health in Arizona, and a joint venture with Henry Ford Health in Michigan.

According to CEO Chris Hunter, this expansion addresses a critical gap: “The need for behavioral health care in this country is increasing while the number of available beds has been decreasing, creating a broadening gap and leaving those patients who need the most care unable to get it.”

The numerous accolades and recognitions received by Acadia Healthcare validate its strategic approach to addressing America’s behavioral health crisis. In an industry where the need continues to outpace available resources, Acadia has demonstrated that expansion and quality can advance simultaneously.

[CF1]Would make this “Acadia’s network of affiliated facilities have achieved” or otherwise have the typical footnote re: Acadia referenced in this.