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Virginia's overdose numbers are moving in the right direction, but a lower death count doesn't eliminate the need for addiction treatment.
The Virginia Department of Health reported 1,197 drug overdose deaths among Virginia residents in 2025, a 23 percent decrease from 2024 [Virginia Department of Health, 2025]. The data are preliminary and may change as death certificates are finalized.
Arlington County has seen a similar decline. The county recorded 29 opioid overdoses in 2025, including three fatal overdoses, compared with 53 total overdoses and 10 fatal overdoses in 2024 [Arlington County, 2025].
For Arlington families, the practical question may now be what happens after someone survives an overdose, completes withdrawal management or leaves detox.
The decline reflects progress in overdose prevention, emergency response and access to interventions that can prevent fatal outcomes. But surviving an overdose doesn't resolve the underlying substance use disorder.
Arlington has spent years strengthening its community response. Through the Arlington Addiction Recovery Initiative and its partners, more than 18,000 boxes of Narcan or naloxone have been distributed since 2018. More than 19,000 fentanyl test strips have been distributed since 2021, and 150 opioid overdose response kits have been installed in public spaces since 2017 [Arlington County, 2026].
On August 31, more than 185 community members gathered at Courthouse Plaza for Arlington's annual Overdose Awareness Vigil [Arlington County, 2026].
Those efforts create opportunities for people to survive an overdose and seek help. The next challenge is connecting that crisis response to continued treatment.
Detox focuses on stabilization and managing withdrawal. Ongoing addiction treatment addresses a broader set of needs, including substance use patterns, triggers, coping skills, behavioral changes and co-occurring mental health concerns.
For Arlington families comparing drug rehab in Virginia, the question isn't only where detox happens. It's what happens once stabilization is complete.
Detox and continued treatment may take place in different settings. Some people need medical detox before treatment, while others may be appropriate for outpatient detox management followed by structured outpatient care. The right path depends on clinical needs, withdrawal risk, substance use history and current stability.
Novara Recovery Center in Fairfax provides adults in Northern Virginia with several levels of outpatient addiction treatment.
When someone contacts the center, the admissions process can help determine what level of support may be appropriate. If a higher level of medical detox is needed, the team can coordinate placement with an appropriate medical provider. When outpatient detox management is clinically appropriate, it may be incorporated into the treatment pathway.
After stabilization, continued care can begin through Novara's outpatient programs.
Novara Recovery Center Virginia Drug & Alcohol Rehab offers a Partial Hospitalization Program, Intensive Outpatient Program and outpatient addiction treatment. Services include dual diagnosis care, trauma-informed treatment, relapse prevention and continuing care.
The clinical approach also includes cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), individual therapy, group therapy and family therapy. Holistic options listed by the center include art therapy, music therapy, yoga, Reiki, adventure therapy, and mindfulness and meditation. Robyn Gearey, LMSW, LGSW, leads IOP groups with a trauma-informed and strength-based perspective.
The goal is to provide a treatment structure that can adjust as a person's needs change.
A Partial Hospitalization Program, or PHP, provides substantial daytime structure while allowing participants to return home. An Intensive Outpatient Program, or IOP, provides recurring treatment with greater flexibility for work, family responsibilities and daily life.
Both can include individual and group therapy, family counseling, medication management, educational programming and relapse-prevention work. PHP services can also incorporate holistic therapies such as art, music, yoga and meditation.
Novara Recovery Center's treatment model is designed around the idea that the appropriate level of care can change as stability improves. Someone may begin with more structure and gradually transition toward less intensive outpatient support.
Mental health and substance use concerns can occur together. Depression, anxiety, trauma and other symptoms can affect coping, relationships and responses to stress, while substance use can complicate existing mental health concerns.
Dual diagnosis treatment addresses both parts of the clinical picture within the same overall plan. This can be particularly important after detox, when the immediate physical effects of withdrawal may have subsided but underlying behavioral or emotional concerns remain.
Families don't need to know every treatment term before making the first call. Useful questions include:
Insurance verification can clarify benefits and potential coverage before treatment begins. Families can verify insurance benefits directly through Novara as part of that process.
A decline in overdose deaths is an important public health achievement. For individual families, recovery still involves decisions about the next appropriate level of care.
Adults in Arlington, Fairfax, Falls Church, Vienna and Alexandria can verify insurance benefits or schedule a confidential assessment by calling Novara Recovery Center in Fairfax at (703) 705-7870. The first conversation can help clarify whether detox coordination is needed and which level of care matches the person's clinical needs.
Get directions from Arlington to Novara Recovery Center
2815 Old Lee Hwy, Floor 2
Fairfax, VA 22031
(703) 705-7870
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