Admissions
Keeping Your Job During Addiction Treatment in New Hampshire and Massachusetts
- Evenings Mon to Thu, 6 to 9 pm
- Answered 24/7
- Most insurance accepted
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Most people who call us have a job they want to keep. Federal and state law offer real protection, and many people never need to take leave at all, because our evening programs meet Monday to Thursday from 6 to 9 pm. This guide explains FMLA, Massachusetts paid leave, New Hampshire's leave plan and the ADA in plain words, with the law cited, and what your employer can and cannot be told.
The short answer
Can you keep your job while you go to rehab?
Usually, yes. If you qualify for the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), you can take up to 12 weeks of job-protected leave in a year for treatment of a substance use disorder by a health care provider. Absence caused by drinking or using, rather than by treatment, is not protected. In Massachusetts, the state's Paid Family and Medical Leave program can pay you for up to 20 weeks of medical leave a year, and it names substance use disorder treatment as something that may qualify. New Hampshire's paid leave plan is voluntary insurance, so it depends on whether you or your employer bought it.
The Americans with Disabilities Act adds protection for people in treatment who are not currently using drugs illegally, including people on prescribed medication for opioid use disorder. And many people need no leave at all. Our Evening IOP in Londonderry and Evening Treatment in Needham meet Monday through Thursday from 6 to 9 pm, after a normal workday.
This page is general information drawn from federal and state sources, each linked below, and it is not legal advice. Your employer's own policies and your union contract, if you have one, can give you more.
At a glance
FMLA, Massachusetts PFML and New Hampshire's paid leave plan
| Compare | FMLA (federal) | Massachusetts PFML | New Hampshire PFML |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who runs it | U.S. Department of Labor | Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave | A voluntary insurance plan offered through the state's partner, MetLife |
| Who is covered | Employees of a covered employer who have worked there 12 months and 1,250 hours in the past year, at a location with 50 or more employees within 75 miles | Most employees in Massachusetts who meet an earnings requirement. Some employers, such as municipalities, are excluded unless they opt in | Workers whose employer buys a group plan, or who buy an individual plan themselves |
| How long | Up to 12 workweeks in a 12-month period | Up to 20 weeks of medical leave for your own serious health condition, up to 26 weeks of combined leave a year | Up to 6 weeks a year |
| Paid? | No, but you can use paid leave from your employer at the same time | Yes, a weekly benefit based on your wages, up to $1,230.39 a week in 2026, usually after a 7-day waiting period | Yes, 60% of your average weekly wage, up to the Social Security wage cap |
| Job protection | Yes. You return to the same or an equivalent job, and group health coverage continues | Yes. Same or equivalent job, health insurance maintained, and any negative change during leave or within 6 months after is presumed to be retaliation | No job protection in the plan itself. FMLA may still apply |
| Addiction treatment | Treatment by a health care provider can qualify (29 CFR 825.119). Absence because of use does not | Substance use disorder may be considered a serious condition if you are receiving treatment from a health care provider | Covers your own serious health condition when disability coverage does not apply. State law names addiction treatment in its definition for a family member's condition |
Your protections
Can you be fired for going to rehab?
Not for taking protected leave. An employer cannot fire, discipline or threaten you because you requested or used FMLA leave, and Massachusetts says the same about PFML. The federal rule on substance abuse leave is specific: FMLA leave can be taken for treatment by a health care provider, and an employer may not take action against you because you took that leave (29 CFR 825.119).
The limits are real, though. The same rule says treatment does not stop an employer from acting on an established substance abuse policy that it applies the same way to everyone and has communicated to all employees, whether or not you are on leave. Under the ADA, an employer may prohibit alcohol and illegal drug use at work, may require that you are not under the influence at work, and may hold you to the same performance and conduct standards as everyone else (42 U.S.C. 12114). Someone who is currently using drugs illegally is not protected when the employer acts on that use.
Where the ADA helps. The ADA covers employers with 15 or more employees. It protects a person who is in a supervised rehabilitation program, or has completed one, and is no longer using drugs illegally. The EEOC says you cannot be denied a job or fired because you are in a medication program for opioid use disorder and taking your medication as prescribed, unless you cannot do the job safely and effectively or another federal law disqualifies you (EEOC guidance). The best time to use these protections is before a performance problem, not after.
Federal leave
How FMLA works for addiction treatment
FMLA applies in both New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Here is what the Department of Labor and the regulations say, in the order you will need it.
- 01
Check that you are eligible: Your employer has to be covered: a private employer with 50 or more employees in 20 or more workweeks this year or last, or any public agency or school. You need 12 months with the employer, 1,250 hours of work in the 12 months before leave starts, and a work location with at least 50 employees within 75 miles.
- 02
Know what counts: Substance abuse may be a serious health condition. Leave counts only for treatment by a health care provider, or by a provider of health care services on referral from one. Missing work because of drinking or using does not count.
- 03
Choose the shape of your leave: Up to 12 workweeks in a 12-month period, all at once or, when medically necessary, in separate blocks or as a reduced schedule. That flexibility matters if you step down from a daytime program to evening care.
- 04
Tell your employer early: You do not have to say the words FMLA. You do need to give enough information that your employer knows the leave may be covered, and give notice as soon as it is possible and practical.
- 05
Expect a certification request: Your employer can ask for information from your health care provider before approving the leave, and must give you at least 15 calendar days to provide it. Ask about any forms you need at your assessment.
- 06
Keep your job and your health plan: When you return, you go back to the same or an equivalent job with the same pay and benefits, and your group health insurance continues on the same terms while you are out. Your employer can require you to use paid leave at the same time.
Massachusetts
Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave for treatment
Massachusetts PFML covers most employees in the state who meet an earnings requirement. It is separate from FMLA and from anything your employer already offers, and some employers run an approved private plan instead, in which case you apply through that plan. The state names substance use disorder among the conditions that may be considered a serious health condition if you are receiving treatment from a health care provider. A serious health condition generally means you cannot work for more than 3 consecutive days and you have an overnight stay, 2 or more treatments within 30 days, or 1 treatment with a plan for continued treatment.
You can take up to 20 weeks of paid medical leave for your own condition, continuously, on a reduced schedule or intermittently. The weekly benefit depends on your wages, with a maximum of $1,230.39 a week in 2026, and there is usually a 7-day unpaid waiting period during which you can use your own paid time off. Tell your employer first, with 30 days' notice when you can, then apply at paidleave.mass.gov. You and your health care provider complete a Certification of Your Serious Health Condition form, and the state also accepts FMLA certification forms.
Your protections start as soon as you tell your employer you plan to take PFML leave. Your employer cannot fire, discipline, demote or threaten you for it, must keep your health insurance going, and must restore you to the same or an equivalent job. Any negative change in your job during leave or in the 6 months after is presumed to be retaliation. Sources: PFML overview and benefits, medical leave for your own serious health condition and employee protections. Questions go to the Department of Family and Medical Leave at (833) 344-7365.
New Hampshire
New Hampshire's paid family and medical leave plan
New Hampshire's Paid Family and Medical Leave plan, created by RSA 21-I:99, is voluntary insurance offered through the state's partner, MetLife, and employers choose whether to take part (RSA 21-I:104). If your employer bought a group plan, or you bought an individual plan, it replaces 60% of your average weekly wage, up to the Social Security wage cap, for up to 6 weeks a year. It covers your own serious health condition when disability coverage does not apply, and caring for a family member with a serious health condition. The state law behind the plan defines a family member's serious health condition to include treatment for addiction prescribed by a treating clinician, consistent with American Society of Addiction Medicine criteria (RSA 21-I:101, VIII).
Two limits to know. The plan itself has no job protection, so your job is protected only if FMLA or your employer's policy applies. And an individual plan has a one-time 7-month waiting period before benefits can start, so it cannot be bought at the last minute. Ask HR whether your employer offers NH PFML or a short-term disability policy, which may pay first. Sources: the NH PFML overview and worker FAQ. The plan's help line is 1-866-595-7365.
Accommodations
Asking for a schedule change under the ADA
If you are not using drugs illegally, the ADA may entitle you to a reasonable accommodation so you can keep working through treatment and recovery. The EEOC gives examples: a different break or work schedule, including scheduling work around treatment, a shift change or a temporary transfer. People who have recovered can ask for an altered schedule to attend support meetings or therapy that help them avoid relapse. Leave can be an accommodation too.
To ask, tell a supervisor, HR or another appropriate person that you need a change at work because of a medical condition. You do not need the right words or a specific accommodation in mind. Your employer can ask you to put it in writing and for a letter from a health care provider. An employer does not have to lower performance standards, drop essential duties or excuse illegal drug use on the job. If you believe your rights were violated, the EEOC says you generally have 180 days to file a charge, or 300 days where a state or local law also applies. Source: EEOC, information for employees.
Confidentiality
What your employer can and cannot be told
Addiction treatment records have their own federal privacy rule, 42 CFR Part 2, and it is stricter than people expect. Records covered by it can be used or disclosed only as the rule allows, and only the information needed for the purpose (42 CFR 2.13). At Clear Steps Recovery, nothing about your treatment is shared with an employer without your written consent.
If you do want your employer to know something, such as the dates you attended for a leave request, you sign a consent that says exactly that. Under 42 CFR 2.31, a written consent must name you, who is sharing and who receives it, describe the information and the purpose, explain that you can revoke it in writing, and carry an expiration date or event, your signature and the date. You decide how much goes on it.
What your employer learns from a leave request is a separate question. The FMLA lets your employer ask for information from your health care provider before approving leave. In Massachusetts, the PFML certification form states that you have a serious health condition, that you cannot work because of it, when it started and how long it is likely to last. Ask to see any form before it goes to your employer.
The conversation
Talking to your manager, HR or an EAP
Most people dread this part more than anything else. A little preparation makes it shorter.
- 01
Decide what you will say: You can describe it as a medical treatment program. To trigger FMLA, you need to give enough information that the leave may be covered, not a diagnosis.
- 02
Start with HR, not your manager, if you can: HR can tell you which leave you qualify for, whether your employer offers NH PFML, short-term disability or an approved Massachusetts private plan, and how to request an accommodation.
- 03
Ask about your Employee Assistance Program: Many employers offer an EAP, a counseling benefit that can help you find treatment. Your benefits materials will say whether you have one and how to reach it.
- 04
Put requests in writing: Send a short email confirming dates and the kind of leave or schedule change you asked for, and keep a copy.
- 05
Plan the schedule first: If an evening program fits, you may only need a small schedule change, or nothing at all. Call admissions before you talk to work, so you know the level of care and the hours.
Keep working
Evening programs: treatment after work, Monday to Thursday, 6 to 9 pm
Both of our centers run an evening program for people who need to keep working, studying or caring for family. In New Hampshire it is Evening IOP at 1D Commons Dr, Units 21 & 22 in Londonderry, off I-93 Exit 4. In Massachusetts it is Evening Treatment at 392 Chestnut Street, Suite 200 in Needham, off Route 128 near the Needham Heights commuter rail stop. Both meet Monday through Thursday from 6 to 9 pm, with the same clinical team and care plan as the daytime programs.
A licensed clinician recommends the level of care at your assessment. Some people start in Day Treatment, full clinical days on weekdays, which usually means taking leave, then step down to evenings and return to work. Others start in the evening program from day one. Our IOP vs PHP guide explains the difference. If you need medical detox first, we arrange a referral to a partner facility, and that part means time away from work.
The admissions line is answered 24/7 at (603) 769-8981, one number for both centers. We verify your insurance at no cost, and same-day assessments are available in many cases.
For family members
If the person in treatment is your spouse, child or parent
FMLA also lets an eligible employee take leave to care for a spouse, child or parent with a serious health condition, and the regulation says an employee may take FMLA leave to care for a covered family member who is receiving treatment for substance abuse, and may not be penalized for it (29 CFR 825.119). Massachusetts PFML offers up to 12 weeks of paid family leave to care for a family member with a serious health condition. New Hampshire's plan covers family care too. Our Family Support Program is open to families of people enrolled with us.
Frequently asked
Questions people ask about work and treatment
Can I get fired for going to rehab?
Does FMLA cover rehab?
Can I use Massachusetts paid leave for addiction treatment?
Does New Hampshire have paid leave for rehab?
Will my employer find out I am in treatment?
Do I have to tell my employer it is for rehab?
Can I keep working while in an outpatient program?
What if I take medication for opioid use disorder?
Does short-term disability cover rehab?
Sources
Where the facts on this page come from
Checked on September 25, 2026. Rules and benefit amounts change, so confirm with the agency or your HR team before you act.
- U.S. Department of Labor, Fact Sheet #28: The Family and Medical Leave Act, and 29 CFR 825.119, leave for treatment of substance abuse
- Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave: PFML overview and benefits, medical leave for your own serious health condition and employee protections
- New Hampshire: RSA 21-I:99 to 21-I:104, the NH PFML overview and worker FAQ
- Americans with Disabilities Act, Titles I and V (42 U.S.C. 12114), and the EEOC's information for employees
- 42 CFR Part 2: section 2.13 and section 2.31
Employers, HR teams, EAPs and referring clinicians: our page for employers and clinicians explains how referrals and consent work.
Check my coverage
Find out what your plan covers before you talk to work.
Most insurance accepted. Your name and a number is all we need to start. Admissions checks your benefits with the carrier at no cost and calls you back with what your plan covers, usually within minutes during the day. Admissions line answered 24/7.
The path is clear
Keep your job. Get the care you need.
Evening programs Monday to Thursday, 6 to 9 pm, in Londonderry, NH and Needham, MA. One call answers the schedule and the insurance questions before you talk to your employer.