NSC provides support to 100+ sobering centers reaching an estimated 202,100 clients annually representing approximately 556,000 visits
A system that prioritizes safety, care, and support for vulnerable populations and communities suffering from harmful substance use and addiction.
To support the expansion of and advance the best practices for sobering care services to provide short-term, easy-to-access, and safe environments for recovery from alcohol and/or other drug intoxication.
NSC was founded in 2015 by three medical professionals in search of a solution outside traditional criminal and emergency systems to serve people with harmful substance use. In 2019, the organization incorporated as a 501c3 nonprofit and hired its first Executive Director in 2022.
Today, NSC is a nationwide organization with deep local ties and growing momentum, well-positioned to create crucial systems change in how we talk about, address, and meet the needs of communities impacted by substance misuse.
NSC provides support to 100+ sobering centers reaching an estimated 202,100 clients annually representing approximately 556,000 visits. The organization offers a forum for national dialogue and provides a platform for providers and stakeholders to engage regarding best practices, policy and program operations. NSC has brought together hundreds of parties through its annual summit, monthly network calls and membership resources. Board members have led dozens of national and regional conference presentations on sobering care.
- SAMHSA’s 2025 Model Definitions for Behavioral Health Emergency, Crisis, and Crisis-related Services
**Sobering Care can also be provided under the name of crisis stabilization, recovery center/station, serial inebriate program, public intoxication center, and others
A Sobering Center is often the front door to recovery* and a critical short-term safety net for society’s most vulnerable populations, addressing the needs of the here and now and working with community partners for additional services.
It is a safe, supportive, and supervised environment caring for publicly intoxicated individuals until they are functionally sober.
A Sobering Center is Not
*Sobering Care prioritizes an expansive view of "recovery" focusing on harm reduction, and not necessarily abstinence from all substances
For individuals
"I'm 41 years old, and I'm a mother, I have two children. When I was homeless and on drugs I had lost my children.
I came to Cherry Hill on April 10, 2022. It was really hard to accept that I needed help. I'm a licensed phlebotomist; I was
working for Kaiser. And I lost everything due to my drug use and unhealthy relationships. And I found myself homeless,
living in a tent behind Loews. One day I remember I was having a really bad day, and I went to this church that my
brother worked for. And one of the priests there gave me the number to Cherry Hill Sobering Center. And I walked
around with that number written inside of my notebook for months before I decided to come. I only came here once,
and that's all it took for me. But I had my mind made up and I was determined to gain everything
back in my life that I had lost."
- Horizon Services - Cherry Hill Sobering (former client, left CHS and went to a residential program, returned to us, she
has her children back, and is now a Lead Counselor at CHS).
" The sobering center has welcomed me when I’ve struggled in my life. When
I felt like giving up on myself the sobering center has been there for me."
- Horizon Services - Butte County Sobering Center, Anonymous Client Feedback, June 2025
"I have been trying to get into a rehab and detox for so long since my wife passed away.
The team has been a huge blessing. They worked endlessly for a month straight to find
somewhere for me to go, and I can’t tell them and this company how much I appreciate
y’all. Seriously you are saving my life. Thank you."
- Horizon Services - Butte County Sobering Center,
Anonymous Client Feedback, June 2025
"I have experienced a sobering center myself first hand and they made me feel like I was
actually a human being. I mean I had forgotten what compassion felt like until I went
there to be honest. That is what made me want to stay sober and help others."
- Samantha Conley, former Sobering Center Austin client
"Sobering Centers provide a safe alternative to the ER For EMS providers
where patients can be supported and connect to the care they need."
- Captain Mike Sasser, Austin/Travis County EMS
In Texas, the Houston Recovery Center partners with Harris Health Systems to
divert patients from their Emergency Department. This partnership has saved Harris
Health Systems over $100,000 over the past year.
"...findings suggest police agencies hold overwhelming positive views of sobering
centers, primarily through saving officer time/resources and providing a better
alternative for intoxicate individual than jail."
- National Policing Institute Research, 2022
“Sobering Centers are the core to community wellness. They are often the door
into the mental health system for those who have struggled to find the help they need.”
- Kristine Carlson-Werito, LCSW
Regional Behavioral Health Clinic Administrator
Presbyterian Medical Services
NSC Member Behavioral Health Services in Los Angeles partners with the Amity Foundation,
which trains individuals who are being released from incarceration to be substance use counselors.
They receive on-the-job, paid training and have supported the sobeirng center's outreach
efforts to LA County Offices of Parole and Probation, the LA County Sheriff's Office, and
other county justice agencies to open doors to treatment for people who are
incarcerated or were formerly.
The Dunnica Sobering Support Center run by Preferred Family Healthcare
in St. Louis, MO operates a mobile outreach unit. Their outreach is an extension
of their brick-and-mortar facility, helping them observe trends in their community and
understand how to best address and approach the needs they identify.
"The staff treated me like a human being.
I was finally able to sleep and think clearly."
- HealthRight360 SoMA Rise client
Check out these key resources about sobering centers.
More articles are available on our News page.
With Alliance for Addiction Payment Reform
In SAMHSA's National Behavioral Health Crisis Care Guidance
Available through CARF International
Laura Elmore LeBlanc, LMSW-AP
President
Chief Executive Officer
The Sobering Center Austin
Austin, TX
Arish Narayen, Esq.
Vice President/Secretary
Project Manager
DC Department of Behavioral Health
Washington, D.C.
Jenny Bickler
Treasurer
Director of Finance
CODA, Inc.
Portland, OR
Shannon Smith-Bernardin, PhD, RN, CNL
Immediate Past President and Co-founder
Associate Professor
School of Nursing, University of California, San Francisco
Oakland, CA
Sylvia Barnard
Executive Director
Good Samaritan Shelter
Santa Barbara, CA
Eliseo Becerra, MBA-HA
Chief Strategic Growth and Special Operations Officer
Horizon Treatment Services
Manteca, CA
Michele Ellington
Behavioral Health Provider Relationship Consultant
Carelon
Sacramento, CA
Terri Galvan, MPP
Deputy Chief of CRISIS
Programs
WellSpace Health
Sacramento, CA
Bernard Gyebi-Foster, MBA, LCPC
Chief Executive Officer
Tuerk House
Baltimore, MD
Jean Harris-Sokora, MSW, LCSW
Program Director
Centerstone
St. Louis, MO
Devora Keller, MD, MPH
Director of Clinical and Quality Improvement
National Health Care for the Homeless
Philadelphia, PA
Executive Director
(510) 298-0314
shauna@nationalsobering.org
Kaitlyn Crowley
Graduate Intern
kaitlyn@nationalsobering.org
Eyana Rodgers
Social Media Support and Strategy
