Editorial Standards | NJ Addiction Centers

NJ Addiction Centers is an editorial resource covering addiction treatment options, policy, and public health data across New Jersey. Every piece of content on this site is held to the same sourcing, accuracy, and transparency standards outlined on this page.

These standards exist because the addiction treatment space carries real consequences. Inaccurate information about substance use disorders, treatment modalities, or insurance coverage can delay care or send someone toward a program that does not fit their clinical needs. We take that seriously, and we believe readers deserve to know exactly how our content is produced.

How Our Content Is Created

Content at NJ Addiction Centers follows a research-first editorial process. Topics are selected based on two criteria: demonstrated public search demand and relevance to New Jersey residents navigating the addiction treatment system.

Before any article is drafted, our editorial team conducts background research using government databases, peer-reviewed literature, and publicly available data from state and federal health agencies. This research phase identifies the key questions people are asking, the clinical and policy context around those questions, and the most current data available.

Articles are written to health journalism standards. That means leading with facts rather than emotional appeals, citing sources inline, and presenting treatment options with honest acknowledgment of complexity. We do not use language designed to create urgency, pressure decisions, or imply guaranteed outcomes. Recovery is a long-term process, and our content reflects that reality.

Our editorial team includes writers with backgrounds in health communication and public policy, working under the direction of a managing editor who oversees accuracy, tone, and sourcing across all published pages. For more about the people behind this publication, visit our team page.

Sourcing and Citation Standards

Every factual claim on this site must be traceable to a credible, named source. We do not publish unattributed statistics, and we do not estimate figures and present them as data.

Our primary sources include:

SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) — national surveys, treatment locator data, and clinical guidelines
NIDA (National Institute on Drug Abuse) — research summaries, drug information, and treatment outcome data
CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) — overdose mortality data, surveillance reports, and public health advisories
NIH (National Institutes of Health) — clinical trial findings and research publications
ASAM (American Society of Addiction Medicine) — level-of-care criteria and clinical practice guidelines
New Jersey Department of Human Services, Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services — state licensing data, treatment capacity reports, and state-funded program information
Peer-reviewed journals — published studies from journals indexed in PubMed, including those covering addiction medicine, psychiatry, and public health

When citing statistics, we include the source name, the specific publication or dataset, and the year of the data. For example, overdose figures reference the CDC WONDER database or the New Jersey State Health Assessment Data system with the applicable reporting year noted. If current data is unavailable for a specific metric, we state that directly rather than substituting an estimate.

We do not treat press releases, facility marketing materials, or unverified testimonials as primary sources.

Review and Fact-Checking Process

Content goes through a multi-step review before publication:

Step 1 — Draft Review. The writer completes a draft and self-checks all sourced claims against the original reference material. Any statistic, clinical claim, or policy statement must have a corresponding source documented in the draft.

Step 2 — Editorial Review. A second editor reviews the piece for accuracy, completeness, tone, and adherence to our content standards. This review checks that sourcing is adequate, that the article does not overstate clinical claims, and that the language meets the health journalism standard we apply to all content.

Step 3 — Clinical Accuracy Check. For content involving clinical topics — treatment modalities, medication-assisted treatment protocols, withdrawal timelines, diagnostic criteria — an additional review is conducted against current clinical guidelines, including ASAM criteria and relevant SAMHSA Treatment Improvement Protocols.

Medical content on NJ Addiction Centers — content covering substance use disorders, treatment modalities, co-occurring mental health conditions, and related clinical topics — is reviewed by Dr. Sarah Mitchell, MD, FASAM, a board-certified addiction medicine physician licensed in New Jersey and New York. Reviewed pages display a “Medically reviewed by” byline with the date of the most recent review. Non-medical editorial content (insurance guidance, family support, recovery resources, statistics) is produced by the editorial team without individual physician review.

Step 4 — Final Quality Check. Before publication, a final pass confirms that internal links are functional, that the page has proper metadata and schema markup, and that the content meets minimum depth standards for its page type.

No article is published until it has passed through each of these stages.

Content Updates and Corrections

Scheduled Reviews

Every published page carries a lastReviewed date in its metadata. We conduct quarterly editorial reviews in which each page is assessed for:

Statistical currency — Are cited figures still the most recent available from their source?
Link integrity — Do external links to government resources, facility websites, and clinical references still resolve correctly?
Clinical accuracy — Have guidelines, formulary changes, or regulatory updates affected any claims on the page?
New developments — Has significant new research, policy change, or state-level action occurred that the page should address?

The lastReviewed date is updated only after a genuine review has been completed. We do not change dates without conducting the review.

Correction Policy

When we identify an error — whether through our own review process or through reader feedback — we correct it promptly and transparently. Our approach:

Factual errors are corrected as soon as they are verified. The corrected text replaces the original, and a correction note is added to the page indicating what was changed and when.
Outdated statistics are updated during quarterly reviews or sooner if a major data release occurs (such as new CDC mortality figures or updated SAMHSA survey results).
Broken links are repaired or replaced with current equivalents during quarterly reviews.

If you identify an error on any page, we encourage you to contact our editorial team. Accurate information in this space is not optional, and we treat every correction as an opportunity to improve.

How We Produce and Fund This Resource

How our content is produced. Editorial content is researched and written by our editorial team with reference to published clinical guidelines from SAMHSA, ASAM, and NIDA. Medical content is reviewed for clinical accuracy by Dr. Sarah Mitchell, MD, FASAM, before publication. Statistical claims cite the original source. Facility profile pages are compiled from public records including SAMHSA’s Behavioral Health Treatment Services Locator, the New Jersey Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services licensed provider list, and accreditation databases from CARF and The Joint Commission.

How we handle help-line calls. Readers who call (888) 699-0742 are connected with an intake specialist who helps them understand their options, navigate insurance verification, and identify facilities that may be appropriate for their situation. Intake specialists may refer callers to treatment providers within our professional network, which can include facilities that have a business relationship with our parent organization.

Editorial independence from placement. We do not accept pay-for-placement on editorial content. Facilities featured in our guides, best-of lists, and comparison articles are selected on editorial merit, not commercial relationship. The phone number is an intake resource; the content on this site is editorial; and we keep the distinction visible.

No medical advice. This site provides health information for educational purposes. It is not a substitute for professional medical evaluation, diagnosis, or treatment. We consistently advise readers to consult qualified healthcare providers for clinical decisions. Readers in crisis should contact SAMHSA’s National Helpline (1-800-662-4357) or 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.

Selection Criteria for Resource Lists

When we publish content that identifies specific treatment programs — such as best-of guides or comparative resource lists — we apply consistent, transparent evaluation criteria:

Accreditation — Current accreditation from recognized bodies such as CARF (Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities) or Joint Commission
Licensing — Active state licensure verified through the New Jersey Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services
Treatment modalities — Range and evidence basis of clinical approaches offered
Insurance acceptance — Breadth of accepted insurance plans, including Medicaid and Medicare
Staff credentials — Publicly available information about clinical staff qualifications
Specialization — Populations or conditions the program is specifically designed to serve

These criteria are stated on each applicable page. Lists are reviewed quarterly and updated when program information changes. Facilities are included based on editorial merit, not commercial relationship.

About This Publication

NJ Addiction Centers is an editorial publication focused on addiction treatment in New Jersey. Our goal is to produce the kind of sourced, balanced health journalism that helps New Jersey residents and their families make informed decisions about treatment. Editorial content is produced separately from our help-line intake operation; the section above on how we produce and fund this resource describes how the distinction is maintained.

For more about our mission, visit About NJ Addiction Centers. To learn about the editorial team responsible for this content, see Our Team.