CASAWORKS for Families: A Promising Approach to Welfare Reform and Substance-Abusing Women. A CASA White Paper.

CASAWORKS for Families is the first national demonstration program to provide simultaneously drug and alcohol treatment; literacy, job, parenting, and social skills training; family violence prevention; and health care to help substance-abusing welfare parents recover. Its mission is to help women on welfare with substance abuse problems achieve recovery, employment, family stability, and quality parenting. In its first year, 683 women in 11 cities in 9 states were enrolled. Early results of the program showed that the proportion of women abstinent from alcohol increased by 60%, those abstinent from cocaine increased by 34%, and those abstinent from marijuana increased by more than 20%. The program holds enormous potential for reducing welfare costs and preventing substance abuse and addiction for the children of these parents. This document presents a brief overview of the program along with preliminary results and the program's costs and benefits. (Contains 4 figures and 33 references.) (JDM)