We will soon begin repaving the main driveway outside the Yawkey, Menino, and Moakley buildings. Weather permitting, driveway closures are scheduled for the following weekends, from Friday at 8 p.m. through Sunday at 8 p.m., on the following dates: Sept. 19-21, Sept. 26-28, Oct. 17-19, and Oct. 24-26. 

Access Changes During Construction:

Pedestrian Access: Patients and visitors will be able to enter Moakley through the entrance on East Concord Street.    

Vehicle Access: Vehicular traffic should use the designated drop-off and pick-up area on East Concord Street or the 710 Albany Street Garage. Signage will indicate where metered parking has been blocked off to create a drop-off/pick-up zone (on E. Concord between Harrison and the Moakley side entrance). 

Learn more about our campus redesign. 

Drug addiction, also called substance use disorder, is a disease that affects a person's brain and behavior and leads to an inability to control the use of a legal or illegal drug or medication. Substances such as alcohol, marijuana and nicotine also are considered drugs. When you're addicted, you may continue using the drug despite the harm it causes.

There are effective and FDA-approved medications to treat some substance use disorders, particularly opioid use disorders, tobacco use disorder, and alcohol use disorder. Therapy and behavioral health treatment is proven to treat substance use disorders, and is often combined with medication. 

Addiction is the most pressing public health crisis of our time. It is a chronic, medical condition that can impair health and function and is characterized by repeated use of a substance despite harmful consequences. Prolonged substance use can cause changes to the brain, making it important to get someone with unhealthy alcohol or drug use into treatment as quickly as possible. People with substance use disorders often have other chronic health conditions, and they can be made more difficult to treat because of substance use. There is effective treatment available for substance use disorders and most people with substance use disorders do recover.

Addiction Can Occur From:

  • Genetic predisposition
  • Psychological factors (i.e., stress, depression, anxiety, eating disorders, personality and other psychiatric disorders)
  • Environmental influences (i.e., exposure to physical, sexual, or emotional abuse or trauma, substance use either in the family or among peers, references within popular culture)
  • Starting use of alcohol, nicotine or other drugs at an early age

More than 20 million people in the United States now live with an addiction, costing more than $400 billion in health-related costs each year. At BMC, we care for thousands of individuals with addiction each year. In fact, 34% of individuals transported by Boston EMS for drug-related illnesses are brought to BMC for care.

Who is Affected?

Everyone is affected by addiction. It is not a disease of the underserved, of those who encountered a rough patch in life, or the uneducated. It is affecting every socioeconomic bracket of our country, every neighborhood, and every ethnicity. Consider the following:

21.7 million people aged 12 or older needed substance use treatment. 2.3 million (10.8) reecieved treatment at a specialty facility in the past year.

In 2015 approximately 20.8 million people aged 12 or older had a substance use disorder in the past year. Opiod Overdose Drug overdoses in the United States have quadrupled since 2000 driven by increases in the the number of opiod overdoses.

Illicit Drug Use - About 1 in 10 Americans used an illicit drug in the past 30 days.
Tobacco Use - Nearly 1 in 4 Americans used a tobaccoproduct in the past month.
Binge Alcohol Use - Nearly 1 in 2 current alcohol users reported binge use in the past month.

Overdose Deaths

The most dramatic metric of substance abuse – overdose deaths – is increasing rapidly, particularly in Massachusetts.

In 2015 approximately 20.8 million people aged 12 or older had a substance use disorder in the past year. Opiod Overdose Drug overdoses in the United States have quadrupled since 2000 driven by increases in the the number of opiod overdoses.

Grayken Center

Through the Grayken Center for Addiction, BMC offers comprehensive treatment programs are tailored to meet the unique needs of patients of all ages and walks of life.

To schedule an appointment with an addiction specialist, please call 617-638-5500, or click on a service to learn more.

Departments and Programs Who Treat This Condition

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We provide care for patients of all backgrounds and advance addiction treatment through bold leadership, advocacy, and research.
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BMC’s Division of Adolescent Medicin is a medical home to adolescents and young adults ages 14 to 25. The division provides primary care and hosts a variety of targeted subspecial…
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An inpatient center that provides innovative care to people with substance use disorders and mental illness in three acute psychiatric units and one clinical stabilization service.
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An initiative offering counseling, support, and medical care for teenagers and young adults with substance use concerns.
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Family Medicine is a multispecialty primary care practice committed to serving individuals and families of all ages, genders, and health conditions. At Family Medicine, patients a…
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The Grayken Center for Addiction at Boston Medical Center is a national hub for substance use disorders resources. Through a variety of treatment and support programs for patients…
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An initiative that supports people who identify as women with substance use disorders with treatment, preventive care, and reproductive health services.
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BMC’s maternal-fetal medicine physicians are specialists in caring for women with high-risk pregnancies and will help ensure you and your baby stay as healthy as possible througho…
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We offer comprehensive obstetric care both at BMC and our affiliated community health centers, where our team of fully trained practitioners provides expert prenatal care.
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The Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology offers full-spectrum reproductive healthcare, including specialized programs. We are committed to providing the highest quality care, a…
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A prenatal care program that offers addiction and behavioral health treatment and support for pregnant people with substance use disorders.