The Patient Changed First: What Shifting Substance Trends Mean for Addiction Treatment

Americans are drinking less, so is alcohol use disorder declining with them? 
On this OG episode of MasterMined, Jeff Skillen joins host Mark Scrivner in the guest seat to test a question legacy treatment operators keep asking: has the patient changed faster than the program? They dig into young-adult drinking data, wellness culture, rising cannabis and kratom use, and the surge in online gambling. Behavioral health leaders will walk away knowing what the research supports, what it doesn’t, and a 30-day plan for realigning assessment tools, patient profiles, and clinical capability.

Key Moments
00:00 – Cold open: the one age group where drinking really dropped
00:48 – Jeff steps into the guest seat: has the patient changed faster than the program?
02:29 – Signal or noise: Jeff reads Mark the latest alcohol headlines
07:12 – Young adults show a real drop in drinking from 2021 to 2024
13:51 – Kratom and the rise of “gas station drugs”
15:48 – Process addictions: online sports betting and gambling among young adults
21:17 – Why your assessment tool may be a decade out of date
24:57 – Three things treatment operators should do in the next 30 days

Data Referenced in This Episode: 
SAMHSA, 2024 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (July 2025): past-month alcohol use, ages 18–25, fell from 50.9% (2021) to 47.5% (2024)
NCS/Circana, Sober Curious Nation & Alcohol Survey (Jan. 2025): non-drinkers cited health (29%), saving money (21%), and mental health (20%)
Caulkins, Addiction (2024): 17.7M daily/near-daily cannabis users vs. 14.7M daily/near-daily drinkers in 2022
CDC, MMWR (March 2026): kratom poison center reports rose about 1,200%, from 258 (2015) to 3,434 (2025)
Yeola et al., JAMA Internal Medicine (Feb. 2025): 94% of U.S. sports wagers were online in 2023; gambling help searches ran 23% above expected
Fairleigh Dickinson University Poll (Sept. 2024): 10% of men ages 18–30 screened in the problem-gambling range vs. 3% overall; young women 7%

Learn More & Connect:
Show Notes + Resources: https://snapshotinteractive.com/mastermined
Connect with Mark Scrivner: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markscrivner | https://snapshot.agency/health
Connect with Jeff Skillen: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeff-skillen-199507/ | https://www.skillsetenterprises.com

Our Sponsor - Snapshot: https://snapshot.agency/health

Snapshot Health | Behavioral Health Marketing Built for Growth and Impact 
Snapshot Health is a strategic growth and marketing partner for behavioral health organizations nationwide. We help treatment centers, mental health providers, and recovery programs grow responsibly by aligning brand, digital strategy, and patient acquisition with clinical integrity and long-term outcomes. Our team specializes in performance-driven marketing for behavioral health, including SEO, paid media, branding, marketing strategy, website development, and admissions enablement. We focus on attracting the right patients, improving conversion, and building scalable systems that support sustainable growth. Snapshot Health brings deep expertise in compliance, ethics, and trust-based marketing. We partner closely with executive teams to drive predictable admissions growth while protecting reputation, mission, and quality of care.
 
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