The Intensive Outpatient Group Program (IOP) Level II.1 is a program designed for individuals who are ready to return to work, school, or who do not require an advanced level of care. IOP also allows for outpatient care at a more affordable price to individuals and managed healthcare, therefore allowing an individual the ability to seek the treatment they may need. These characteristics, in addition to the three main components of the IOP's psychoeducational, process, and family group meetings, make the IOP a critical group in addiction treatment. The IOP allows for a greater frequency of contact from the counselor compared to one-on-one sessions. Group sessions last approximately eight weeks with clients meeting per group 3 times a week for 3 hours. The goals of these sessions are to achieve abstinence, support behavioral changes, initiate participation in community-based support groups, assist the client in developing constructive relationships, and improve problem solving skills and coping strategies. These goals within the IOP groups help the client adjust to the new lifestyle in sober living. The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) has developed patient placement criteria for substance use disorder treatment. (Hoffman et al. 1991) This criterion is widely used to define whether a client is appropriate for IOP Level II.1. This level of care requires at least nine contact hours on a weekly basis. Research shows that the criteria described in the ASAM PPC are reliable and have predictive validity (Gastfriend 1999). Admission to Level II.1 requires a DSM-IV-based substance-related disorder diagnosis; an identification of at least one criterion in dimensions 4,5 or 6 of the ASAM PPC-2R; and meet the requirements of size 2 and... half of the sheet... substance abuse treatment url. 1999;16:195–219. [PubMed]Mee-Lee, D.; Shulman, G.D.; Callahan, J.F.; Fishman, M.; Gastfriend, D.; Hartman, R.; and Hunsicker, R.J., eds. Patient placement criteria for the treatment of substance-related disorders: Second revised edition (PPC-2R). Chevy Chase, MD: American Society of Addiction Medicine, 2001. SAMHSA, Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration, Office of Applied Studies (2000). Summary of results from the 1999 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse. Rockville, MD. http: //www.drugabusestatistics.samhsa.gov.Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2009). Results of the 2008 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: National Results (Office of Applied Studies, NSDUH Series H-36,HHS.PublicationNo.SMA09-4434).Rockville,MD,p.25., http: //www. oas.samhsa.gov/nsduh/2k8nsduh/2k8Results.pdf