Massachusetts Center for Addiction
Mental Health Treatment in Massachusetts
Massachusetts Center for Addiction treats mental health conditions as a primary diagnosis. You do not need a substance use problem to be a client here. Some people come to us for depression, anxiety, trauma or a mood disorder on its own. Others are dealing with a mental health condition and substance use at the same time. Either way, one clinical team in Quincy treats the whole picture.
Our programs are outpatient. You come in for treatment during the day or in the evening and go home afterward. For people whose symptoms are serious but who do not need a hospital bed, that is usually the right level of care, and it is the level most insurance plans cover without a fight. This page explains what we treat, the two levels of care we offer, what a week of treatment looks like, who the program fits, what it costs, and how to start. If you already know you want to talk to someone, call 844-486-0671. Admissions answers around the clock.
Mental Health Conditions We Treat
We treat adults, diagnosed or not yet diagnosed, for the conditions below. If you are not sure what you are dealing with, the clinical assessment at intake is where that gets sorted out.
- Depression: major depressive disorder, persistent depressive disorder, and depression that has not responded to medication alone.
- Anxiety and panic disorder: generalized anxiety, panic attacks, social anxiety and phobias.
- PTSD and trauma: post-traumatic stress from a single event or from years of it, including complex trauma.
- Bipolar disorder: bipolar I, bipolar II and cyclothymia, with psychiatric medication management built into the program.
- Borderline personality disorder and other personality-spectrum conditions, treated with skills-based DBT work.
- Schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder, for people who are stable enough for outpatient care and need structure, medication support and therapy.
- Co-occurring mental health and substance use: both conditions treated together, by the same team, on one plan.
Two Levels of Outpatient Care
The assessment at intake places you in one of two levels. Most people who come in with acute symptoms start in PHP and step down to IOP as things stabilize. The team stays the same the whole way, so nothing gets re-explained, and before IOP ends you leave with a plan for ongoing care.
| Level | Schedule | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Partial hospitalization (PHP) | About 6 hours a day, 5 days a week | Severe symptoms that need daily structure but not an overnight stay; stepping down from a psychiatric hospitalization |
| Intensive outpatient (IOP) | About 3 hours a session, 3 to 5 days a week, daytime or evening | Symptoms that weekly therapy is not holding; stepping down from PHP; people who need to keep working or parenting |
If you cannot get to Quincy several days a week, both PHP and IOP are available virtually, with the same clinicians and the same curriculum over secure video, or as a mix of in-person and virtual sessions.
What a Week of Treatment Looks Like
Your first day is the clinical assessment: a licensed clinician takes a full history, screens for the conditions above and for substance use, and recommends a level of care. If medication is part of the picture, you see a psychiatric provider in the first week. From there, a typical week includes:
- Individual therapy with your primary clinician, at least weekly.
- Group therapy most days, led by a licensed clinician and focused on a skill or a theme rather than open discussion.
- Psychiatric medication management, with evaluation, prescribing and follow-up handled inside the program and coordinated with your therapist.
- Skills work you take home: sleep, routine, managing a panic attack, handling the hour after a hard conversation.
- Family sessions when you want them. Partners and parents are usually relieved to be included.
PHP days run about six hours, with lunch provided. IOP sessions are about three hours, and the evening track exists specifically so people can keep their jobs.
The Therapies We Use
Every therapy on this list has a strong evidence base for the conditions we treat. Which ones end up in your plan depends on the assessment, not on a fixed curriculum.
- Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for depression, anxiety and panic: learning to catch and test the thoughts that drive symptoms.
- Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) for emotional regulation, distress tolerance and relationships, and the core of our borderline personality disorder work.
- Trauma-focused therapy, including cognitive processing therapy, for PTSD and complex trauma.
- Psychiatric medication management, including for bipolar disorder and treatment-resistant depression.
- Motivational interviewing, for the days when staying in treatment is itself the hard part.
- Group therapy and family therapy.
Who This Program Is For, and Who It Is Not For
Outpatient mental health treatment is the right fit when symptoms are getting in the way of work, school, relationships or basic daily functioning, and weekly therapy either is not enough or is not happening. It is also the right next step after a psychiatric hospitalization, when going straight home to a weekly appointment feels like too big a drop.
It is not the right fit for a medical or psychiatric emergency. If you or someone with you is in immediate danger, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room. If you are thinking about suicide, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, which is free, confidential and open 24 hours. We can help you plan what comes after the crisis, and we often do, but we are not an emergency service.
We also do not provide inpatient or residential psychiatric care. If the assessment shows that is what you need, we will say so and help you find it.
When Mental Health and Substance Use Overlap
Depression and drinking feed each other. Anxiety and benzodiazepines do. Trauma and almost anything does. Programs that treat only one side tend to lose the client to the other. Because this center started in addiction treatment, we built the mental health program to handle both at once: the same clinician, the same plan, and medication decisions that account for both. If substance use is part of your story, the dual diagnosis program is where that happens. If it is not, you will be in groups with other people who are here for mental health.
What It Costs and What Insurance Covers
PHP and IOP for mental health are standard, covered levels of care under nearly every commercial plan in Massachusetts, including Blue Cross Blue Shield, Aetna, Cigna, Harvard Pilgrim, Tufts, UnitedHealthcare and Optum. What you pay depends on your deductible and copay, which is why we check your specific benefits before you commit to anything. Call and the admissions team verifies coverage while you are on the phone, usually in a few minutes. There is no obligation attached to the call.
If you need time away from work for PHP, those hours qualify for intermittent FMLA and Massachusetts PFML leave, and we complete the paperwork. For IOP, most clients keep working and use the evening track. More on paying for treatment.
The Clinical Team
Mental health treatment here is delivered by Massachusetts-licensed mental health counselors (LMHC), licensed clinical social workers (LICSW) and psychiatric providers, with licensed alcohol and drug counselors (LADC) on the same team for co-occurring cases. Everyone is in-house, so your therapist and your prescriber talk to each other. You can meet the team before you call.
Mental Health Treatment in Quincy, Serving the South Shore and Greater Boston
The program runs at 1515 Hancock Street, Suite 300, in Quincy Center, a short walk from the Quincy Center stop on the Red Line. Clients come from across the South Shore, from Braintree, Weymouth, Hingham, Milton and Plymouth, and from Boston and Dorchester. The center is Joint Commission accredited and licensed by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Directions and parking.
Outpatient Mental Health Treatment: Common Questions
No. Mental health is a primary program at Massachusetts Center for Addiction, not an add-on. Many clients have never had a substance use problem. If you do, the same team treats both.
No. The clinical assessment at intake includes diagnosis. Many people arrive knowing only that they are not okay, and that is enough to start.
Often within 24 to 48 hours of the first call, sometimes the same day. The pace depends on insurance verification, which usually takes minutes, and on scheduling the assessment.
In IOP, yes. The evening track exists for that reason. PHP runs during the workday, so most PHP clients take intermittent FMLA or Massachusetts PFML leave, and we complete the paperwork.
If medication is part of your plan, yes. Psychiatric evaluation and medication management happen inside the program and are coordinated with your therapist.
PHP usually runs a few weeks. IOP runs several weeks to a few months, with hours coming down over that time. When IOP ends, you leave with a plan for ongoing care. Length is set by progress and weekly clinical reviews, not by a calendar.
Yes. Your records are protected under HIPAA and Massachusetts law. Nothing is shared with an employer, a family member or anyone else without your written permission.
Get Started
Call 844-486-0671 or request a call back. The first conversation is with an admissions counselor, not a salesperson. They will ask what is going on, verify your insurance while you are on the line, and schedule the assessment. Same-day assessments are often available. If you are calling about someone else, the family program page explains how that works.
This page describes our outpatient mental health program and is not a substitute for a clinical assessment. If you are in crisis, call or text 988. Last updated October 2026.
