Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP)
- Three to five days a week, tapering as you progress
- Morning and afternoon tracks, so a job stays a job
- In person at Las Vegas, or Virtual IOP through Killeen
- You sleep at home, in your own bed
Clinically reviewed by
David Jaskowiak, LPC-S, Clinical Director, Killeen
Last reviewed August 2026
Check your insurance
Free & confidential • No obligation • Usually answered within minutes
What you are choosing
IOP keeps your life in place, triggers included.
Residential works partly by removing you from everything that makes using easy. IOP does not do that, which is its advantage and its risk in the same breath. You practise recovery in the environment you actually live in, with the people and pressures that are actually there.
That works well when home is stable and supportive. It works badly when home is where the using happens. Being honest about which one you have is the most useful thing you can do on the first call.
For a lot of people, stepping away for a month was never possible.
The job, the kids, the mortgage. IOP is the level of care built for exactly that problem, and it is also where many people land after residential or PHP, as the step down that keeps the structure while normal life comes back.
Around your schedule
You do not have to choose between treatment and your job.
This is the reason most people ask about IOP by name. Sessions run in morning and afternoon tracks a few days a week, so treatment can sit alongside a shift, a semester or a school run rather than replacing them.
Keeping the job is not a small thing either. For most people it is the health insurance, the housing and the reason to get up, all of which recovery is easier with than without.
Find Your ProgramKeep working
Sessions a few days a week, with morning and afternoon tracks, so a full-time job stays a full-time job.
Keep studying
Treatment that fits around a class schedule rather than costing you a semester.
Stay with your family
You go home at the end of the day. For parents in particular, this is often what makes treatment possible at all.
Keep it private
No extended absence to explain. What you tell people about where you are on a Tuesday is up to you.
Choosing a level
Is IOP right for you?
The assessment settles it properly, with no obligation either way. This is roughly how it divides.
Your home is stable and supportive
You have somewhere safe to sleep and people around you who are on your side. That environment is what makes outpatient work.
You are stepping down from PHP or residential
You have done the intensive part and need the structure to taper rather than stop. This is the most common route into IOP.
Weekly therapy is not enough
You need more than an hour a week and less than living on site. That gap is precisely what IOP fills.
You are still physically dependent
If you need to stop using safely first, detox comes before any outpatient program, not instead of it.
Home is where the using happens
If the environment is the problem, outpatient asks you to recover inside it. Residential exists for this reason.
You have tried outpatient and it did not hold
Not a failure, and not a reason to try the same level again. A more intensive setting is usually the honest answer.
What a week looks like
What an IOP week actually contains.
Group work is the backbone, with individual therapy alongside it. The clinical content is the same evidence-based work that runs at every other level of care.
Group therapy
The core of the week. Other people at various stages of the same thing, which is harder to perform for than a single clinician and more useful because of it.
Individual therapy
One-to-one sessions on the material that is specifically yours, including the trauma work where that applies.
Relapse prevention
Naming your triggers concretely and rehearsing what you do when one arrives. More urgent in outpatient, because the triggers are right there.
CBT, DBT, EMDR and MI
The same evidence-based approaches used in residential: cognitive behavioural work, emotional regulation, trauma processing and motivational interviewing. EMDR runs as individual sessions.
Co-occurring mental health support
Anxiety, depression, trauma and PTSD treated alongside the substance use rather than referred elsewhere.
Family involvement
Sessions that include the people you go home to every night, which in outpatient is not an abstraction.
Our Montessouri outpatient site runs PHP and IOP on site, in morning and afternoon tracks. Being in the room with the group is the point for most people, and it is the format we would recommend first if you can get there.
Virtual IOP exists because getting there is not realistic for everyone: distance, no transport, or a military posting somewhere else. It runs the same clinical programme, and it is a real option rather than a consolation prize.
Where IOP sits
Where IOP sits in a five stage plan.
Most people arrive at IOP from somewhere else and leave it for somewhere else. Starting here is entirely possible when the situation is stable.
Medical detox
Withdrawal managed safely, where physical dependence is in the picture.
Residential
Living on site, away from the environment, while the deeper work happens.
PHP
Most of the day, most days. The most intensive outpatient level.
IOP
Three to five days a week, tapering. Structure, with your life running alongside it.
Aftercare
Continuing support once the formal program ends, with a plan made before it does.
Where we run IOP
IOP runs in Las Vegas in person and at Killeen virtually.
IOP runs at two of our sites, in two different formats: in person at our Las Vegas Montessouri outpatient centre, and as Virtual IOP through Killeen. Our other facilities focus on detox and residential care, and our team will tell you plainly if the geography does not work.
Schedules, session times and track availability vary between the two, so ask about the specific program when you call rather than assuming they run identically.
See all locations
Las Vegas Montessouri
Our dedicated outpatient site, running PHP and IOP in morning and afternoon tracks, with an eating disorder track alongside substance use.
Killeen
Killeen runs Virtual IOP, built for clients facing distance or transportation barriers, including military families who relocate or are stationed elsewhere. Detox and residential run on the Killeen campus in person.
- ✓Which days and times the program runs, and whether a morning or afternoon track fits better
- ✓Whether in-person at Las Vegas or Virtual IOP at Killeen makes more sense for you
- ✓Whether IOP is the right starting level, or whether PHP or detox comes first
- ✓How long the program typically lasts for someone in your situation
- ✓What your plan covers, verified while you wait
Confidential, and there is no obligation at the end of it.
In their words
What people say about the Las Vegas program
I went here for recovery and it was the best decision I ever made. The rooms were clean, the food was great, and the staff went above and beyond to help out. If anyone is looking for help Virtue is the best first step towards a happy clean life.
Las Vegas, NV · Google
This recovery center is the best in town. All staff here have been nothing but great. Always asking how you are doing, food when you need it and you get to meet great people in recovery. The best thing I've done is come here and get sober.
Las Vegas, NV · Google
Hi. Just want to say hands down the most caring people I met. Both inpatient and outpatient staff and counselors I honestly believe they all care for us. Thank you Mario, Patricia, Steven, Dominique, Liz, Adam, Derek, Leti, Brittany, Vishon, Greer. You are all very amazing and caring. You should be proud of yourself for what you do.
Las Vegas, NV · Google
Reviews are unedited and pulled from Google. They reflect individual experience and are not a guarantee of outcome.
Common questions
Questions people ask about IOP
Anything not answered here, ask on the call. There is no obligation.
(866) 461-3339- What is an intensive outpatient program (IOP)?
- An intensive outpatient program (IOP) is a structured level of addiction treatment where you attend therapy and support sessions, typically three to five days a week for a few hours each, tapering as you progress — while living at home and continuing with work, school, or family. It provides meaningful, consistent treatment without requiring you to stay overnight or step away from daily life. IOP is often used as a step down from PHP or residential care, or as a starting point for people with a stable environment.
- Can I work or go to school while in IOP?
- Yes. That is one of the biggest reasons people choose IOP. Sessions run in morning and afternoon tracks a few days a week, so IOP is designed to fit around work, school, and family responsibilities. It lets you get real, structured treatment and accountability while keeping the daily commitments that matter to you.
- How many days a week is IOP, and how long does it last?
- IOP runs three to five days a week, around three hours a day, tapering down as you progress rather than holding a fixed schedule regardless of how you are doing. The overall length depends on that progress, but many people attend for several weeks to a few months, often stepping down to standard outpatient as they stabilize. Our team tailors the schedule and duration to fit your recovery and your life.
- How is IOP different from PHP?
- IOP is less intensive than partial hospitalization (PHP). PHP runs about six hours a day, five days a week, while IOP is three to five days a week for around three hours, so IOP leaves considerably more room for work and daily responsibilities. Many people step down from PHP to IOP as they progress. A clinical assessment finds the level that fits where you are in recovery.
- Is IOP effective for addiction?
- Yes. For the right person, IOP is a very effective level of care, particularly for those with a supportive home environment, a milder addiction, or those continuing recovery after more intensive treatment. It combines evidence-based therapy, relapse prevention, and peer support with the flexibility to keep living your life. The key is matching the level of care to your needs, which our team helps you do.
- Do you offer virtual or telehealth IOP?
- Yes, at our Killeen location. Virtual IOP (VIOP) was built specifically for people who cannot reliably get to a facility: distance, transportation, or a military posting somewhere else. Our Las Vegas Montessouri program is delivered in person. Tell our team which one your situation calls for and they will point you to the right program.
- Where do you offer IOP?
- Intensive outpatient is available at two of our locations: Las Vegas (Montessouri), in person, and Killeen, as Virtual IOP. Our other facilities focus on medical detox and residential treatment. If neither program works for your geography, say so on the call and our team will tell you plainly rather than starting an admission that will not hold.
- Does insurance cover IOP?
- Most commercial and PPO plans cover medically necessary intensive outpatient treatment. Coverage depends on your specific plan, so the simplest next step is a free, confidential insurance verification.
You are allowed to ask
If you are calling for someone else
Most people who call us are calling about someone they love. You can ask about the options and check their insurance on their behalf, and it stays a conversation until you decide otherwise.
Related reading
Partial hospitalization (PHP)
Five to six days a week instead of three to five, for people who need more structure before stepping down to this.
Read the guide →Virtual IOP at Killeen
Built for distance, no transport, or a military posting somewhere else. The same clinical programme, delivered remotely.
Read the guide →Insurance
We accept most major insurance plans.
And most PPO plans. Coverage varies by plan and by facility, so if your carrier is not shown, ask rather than assume.
- Free, and there is no obligation at the end of it
- Usually answered within minutes during the day
- You can check on behalf of someone else
- Admissions answers the phone 24 hours a day
- No insurance? Ask about private pay options. Nobody is turned away without knowing their next step.
Check my insurance coverage
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Call us and start with a clinical assessment.
It is what decides whether IOP fits and whether in person or virtual makes more sense. Admissions arranges it and verifies your insurance on the same call, with no obligation at the end of it.
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