Marion treatment program expands substance use care for adolescents

Insight Human Services celebrates a nine-person residential program for youths ages 12–17

A new residential substance use treatment program in Marion will provide around-the-clock care for adolescents, adding a treatment option for North Carolina families whose children need intensive support.

Insight Human Services celebrated the program with a ribbon-cutting Wednesday, Nov. 4, at 200 Little Acres Drive. The program is designed to serve up to nine youths ages 12–17 in a structured, homelike setting, according to its event announcement.

The 24-hour program combines clinical treatment, academics, family involvement and recovery skill-building, according to information released about the opening. Young people will receive treatment while maintaining connections with their families and education, helping prepare them to return home.

The program was developed in partnership with the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services and Vaya Partners. It is supported by the state’s Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities and Substance Use Services.

McDowell County Interim County Manager William Kehler attended the ribbon-cutting with county staff, according to a county announcement. Other attendees included Interim Deputy County Manager Aikman Kazee, Human Services Director Sarah Brewer and Deputy Human Services Director Emily Sanders.

The opening comes as state data show continued treatment needs alongside substantial declines in reported substance use among high school students.

An estimated 7.58% of North Carolina youths ages 12–17 — roughly 1 in 13 — had a substance use disorder in the preceding year, according to 2022–23 federal survey estimates included in a March 2026 UNC-Chapel Hill workforce assessment supported by NCDHHS.

The report listed drug use disorder at 6.16% and alcohol use disorder at 2.46% for that age group.

Those statewide estimates do not establish how many McDowell County adolescents need residential care. Treatment needs depend on individual assessments.

More recent school survey results show improvements. In North Carolina’s 2025 High School Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 16% of students reported current alcohol use and 10.6% reported current marijuana use.

The Department of Public Instruction described both figures as 20-year lows, compared with 42.3% for alcohol and 21.4% for marijuana in 2005.

The anonymous, voluntary survey included 1,692 students at 25 traditional public and charter high schools. Its weighted results represent students in grades nine through 12 at those schools statewide, rather than McDowell County specifically.

The school survey measures reported behaviors, while the federal estimates measure substance use disorders. Neither means every young person who reports substance use needs residential treatment.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says underage drinking is associated with school absences, lower grades, injuries, and other health risks. Starting to drink earlier in life is also associated with a higher risk of developing alcohol use disorder later.

For the Marion program, education and family participation are part of the planned treatment model, alongside clinical care and skills intended to support recovery after a young person returns home.