Addiction Treatment in Meigs County, Tennessee

The Meigs County Picture

What recovery looks like from along the Tennessee River

If you live in Meigs County — Decatur, Ten Mile up on Watts Bar Lake, Georgetown down TN-58 toward the Hamilton County line, Euchee, Big Spring, Union Grove, or anywhere along the valley between the river and the eastern ridges — you already know the geography of the drive. You know that TN-58 is the spine of the county and that it’s a two-lane road that bottlenecks behind a tractor or a pulp truck. You know that the closest sit-down hospital is across the county line in either Athens or Cleveland. And you know that a specialist appointment almost always means a minimum of forty minutes in the car each direction, sometimes more depending on weather and the Watts Bar Dam crossing. In this corner of East Tennessee, healthcare is something you plan around — the nearest sit-down hospital and any specialist are at least a 40-minute drive across the county line. There is no buprenorphine clinic inside Meigs County today. The two closest are ours — our Cleveland clinic, about 40 minutes southeast via TN-58 and US-11, and our Soddy-Daisy clinic, about 45 minutes southwest via TN-58, TN-60, and the Dayton–Soddy corridor.

The patients we see most often from Meigs County aren’t the stereotype people imagine when they hear “opioid crisis.” They’re farmers still running hay and soybean acreage in the valley. They’re retired TVA workers from the Watts Bar generation. They’re plant workers commuting out to Athens, Cleveland, or the industrial parks in Rhea County. They’re roofers, landscapers, equipment operators, and grandparents raising grandchildren in three-generation households along Highway 58. A lot of them started on a legitimate prescription ten or fifteen years ago for a farm injury, a back surgery, or the long tail of a car accident on a rural road — back when Tennessee was one of the highest-prescribing states in the country. When the prescriptions got tightened, they didn’t stop needing something.

Southeast Tennessee regional overdose burden

High Impact Area (HIA) counties including Meigs

11 counties in HIA

77% of TN OD deaths

fentanyl-driven 2023 share synthetic opioids

Source: Tennessee Department of Health, Southeast Regional Office. Meigs County sits in the Southeast High Impact Area alongside Bledsoe, Bradley, Franklin, Grundy, Hamilton, McMinn, Marion, Polk, Rhea, and Sequatchie. Regional data are used because Meigs’s population (approximately 12,300) is too small to publish county-specific death counts without suppression.

Tennessee statewide overdose trend

12-month rolling totals, Tennessee residents

3,678 Feb 2023–Feb 2024

3,616 Calendar 2023

2,425 Feb 2024–Feb 2025 ↓ 34% YoY

Source: CDC National Vital Statistics System provisional data and Tennessee Department of Health. Meigs County is included in the statewide total and the Southeast HIA regional figures above.

Why small-county numbers look quiet on paper

Meigs County’s population of roughly 12,300 is small enough that the Tennessee Department of Health typically suppresses county-specific annual drug-death counts — publishing them would risk identifying individuals in a county where everyone knows everyone. What we show instead is the Southeast High Impact Area, the 11-county regional footprint Meigs belongs to. That region accounts for a disproportionate share of Tennessee overdose deaths and is one of the areas where the Tennessee Department of Health has concentrated its Overdose Response Coordination Office (ORCO) resources, including the HIA RISE (Recovery, Information, Support, and Engagement) navigation program that serves Meigs residents directly.

The statewide picture has shifted fast. Tennessee overdose deaths dropped 34% in a single year (2024 to early 2025) — the steepest annual decline the state has ever recorded — driven by naloxone saturation, a shift in the street fentanyl supply, and people finally moving from active use into treatment. East Tennessee, which has historically carried the highest overdose burden in the state (roughly 43% of 2022 deaths), is seeing that curve bend for the first time in a decade. But the burden is still real. The Meigs County resident who has been quietly functioning on off-label pills for years, who has never had a fatal-overdose scare but also has never had a sober week, is exactly the person this decline depends on. That’s the conversation we want to have at a first visit.

If you or someone in your household has been revived with Narcan in the last twelve months, or has narrowly avoided it, a first appointment is almost always the right next step. We do not require a period of abstinence, and we do not require you to have tried anything else first.

Nearest Location · ~40 min from Decatur

Cleveland Clinic

Address2130 Chambliss Avenue NW
Cleveland, TN 37311

HoursTuesday & Thursday · 9:00 am – 4:30 pm

Phone423-498-2000

Fax423-498-2001

Request a Callback Get Directions

Restoration Recovery Cleveland clinic serving Meigs County, TN

Also Accessible · ~45 min from Decatur

Soddy-Daisy Clinic

Address210 Walmart Drive, Suite 100
Soddy-Daisy, TN 37379

HoursMonday & Wednesday · 9:00 am – 4:30 pm

Phone423-498-2000

Fax423-498-2001

Request a Callback Get Directions

From across Meigs County

Realistic access from your corner of the valley

Meigs County covers roughly 195 square miles of river valley, ridge, and lakeshore. The county is shaped by the Tennessee River along its western boundary — with Watts Bar Lake upstream of the dam and Chickamauga Lake further south — so a lot of the geography runs north-south along TN-58. From the northern tip up at Ten Mile to the southern county line near Georgetown is a solid 30 miles before you even leave Meigs. Our Cleveland clinic sits east across Bradley County, and our Soddy-Daisy clinic sits southwest on the Hamilton County line. Your first visit is in person at whichever clinic fits your commute best; after that, telehealth follow-ups are available. Here’s how that looks from each community.

Decatur (county seat — central Meigs)

If you live in Decatur, along Main Street, near the Meigs County Courthouse on the square, or in the neighborhoods on either side of TN-58 where it runs through town, you’re at the geographic center of the county’s drive decision. To our Cleveland clinic: take TN-58 south to US-11 east, about 40 minutes. To our Soddy-Daisy clinic: take TN-58 south to TN-60 west through Dayton, then TN-27 south through Soddy-Daisy, about 45 minutes. The Cleveland route is slightly shorter and passes through Athens and the I-75 corridor, so if you already run errands in that direction it’s the natural fit. The Soddy-Daisy route is slightly longer but points you toward Chattanooga, which may matter if your work, shopping, or family life pulls you that way. Pick whichever clinic is closer to where you already drive for work, shopping, or family.

Ten Mile and the Watts Bar Lake communities (northern Meigs)

If you live up in Ten Mile — a summer-cottage and year-round community on the eastern shore of Watts Bar Lake, technically split between northern Meigs and southeastern Roane — or in the older settlements around Euchee and Big Spring, your drive times stretch. To our Cleveland clinic: TN-68 south to TN-58 south to US-11 east, about 55–60 minutes. To Soddy-Daisy: slightly longer at 60–65 minutes via TN-58 and TN-60 through Dayton. For residents this far north, we strongly encourage booking your first in-person visit on a day you’re already heading toward Cleveland or Chattanooga for something else, because the round trip consumes most of a half-day. After the first visit, telehealth follow-ups help keep this drive workable, so not every follow-up has to take a half-day.

Georgetown and TN-58 south (southern Meigs)

If you live down in Georgetown, the Union Grove community, or the southern stretch of TN-58 near the Hamilton County line, you have the shortest drive in the county to our Soddy-Daisy clinic — about 30–35 minutes via TN-58 south through the valley and then TN-60 west to the Dayton–Soddy corridor. Cleveland is also accessible at 40–45 minutes via TN-58 south and then US-11 east once you cross into Bradley County. Georgetown sits on the fertile valley floor where corn, soybeans, and hay are still the main crops, and we see a fair number of patients from this part of the county who farm or work land-based jobs where a same-day first visit matters because a second trip is out of the question that week.

Euchee, Big Spring, and the Watts Bar shoreline

Euchee is the old river-landing community in northern Meigs — most of the original settlement is now under Watts Bar Lake, with what remains integrated into the Ten Mile area. If you live along the Euchee or Big Spring shorelines, or in the cabin-and-farm country between the lake and TN-58, your practical drive options mirror the Ten Mile pattern: about 55 minutes to Cleveland or 60 minutes to Soddy-Daisy. The quieter, less-trafficked route is TN-304 to TN-58 south, which keeps you off the faster TN-68 corridor but adds a few minutes. In winter and after heavy rain, some of the valley back roads hold water longer than the state routes; plan accordingly and reschedule to telehealth if the conditions are genuinely unsafe.

Birchwood line (Hamilton County border / far southern Meigs)

Meigs shares its southern border with Hamilton County near the Birchwood community. If you live in the far-south part of Meigs close to that line, our Soddy-Daisy clinic becomes a real option at about 30 minutes via TN-58 and Birchwood Pike. Our main Chattanooga clinic on Shallowford Road (Monday–Friday hours, about 55–60 minutes total) may be a better schedule match than Cleveland (Tuesday and Thursday) or Soddy-Daisy (Monday and Wednesday). We can help you decide at booking.

Two clinics, one phone number

Whichever clinic you pick, the first call is the same: 423-498-2000. The person who answers can look at your ZIP code, your work hours, and your preferred days of the week and make a recommendation. Nothing locks you in — patients can transfer between our Cleveland, Soddy-Daisy, or Chattanooga clinics any time, and your chart travels with you organization-wide. Injection visits (Sublocade, Brixadi, Vivitrol) happen at our Cleveland or Chattanooga clinic, since Soddy-Daisy does not give injections, and can be timed to a day you were going to be in the area anyway.

Serving Meigs County, Tennessee

Meigs County is a rural county along the Tennessee River with Decatur as its county seat. Our Cleveland clinic is approximately 40 minutes southeast, and our Soddy-Daisy clinic is approximately 45 minutes southwest. Suboxone treatment and counseling are available at both, and telehealth follow-ups are used extensively to reduce travel time for Meigs County residents scattered across Decatur, Ten Mile, Georgetown, Euchee, and the Watts Bar Lake communities.

How Treatment Works

Restoration Recovery provides outpatient addiction treatment — no residential stay, no detox facility. You visit our Cleveland or Soddy-Daisy clinic for appointments and go home the same day. Follow-up visits step down from weekly to every two weeks to monthly.

Your first visit typically takes 2 to 3 hours and follows a four-step flow: intake (DSM-5 assessment + COWS score for opioid use disorder), counseling, a doctor evaluation, and a same-day Suboxone prescription (Sublocade and Brixadi injections are ordered per-patient and administered at a follow-up visit). Follow-up visits are shorter and can often be done via telehealth from home — essential for Meigs County residents who want to minimize the 40-to-45-minute drive.

What We Treat

We provide evidence-based treatment for addiction to opioids and opioid-like substances including heroin, fentanyl, oxycodone (OxyContin, Percocet), hydrocodone (Vicodin, Norco), morphine, codeine, tramadol, and prescription painkillers.

We also treat alcohol use disorder, stimulant dependence (cocaine, methamphetamine, Adderall, Ritalin, Vyvanse), benzodiazepine dependence (Xanax, Klonopin, Ativan, Valium), cannabis use disorder, and co-occurring mental health conditions including anxiety, depression, and trauma. Our Chattanooga clinic treats anxiety, depression, and trauma with or without addiction treatment. The first visit for that care is in person there; after that, visits can be by telehealth.

Kratom & 7-Hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) Addiction

Kratom and its concentrated derivative 7-OH are increasingly available and can cause opioid-like physical dependence with severe withdrawal symptoms. Our providers have experience treating kratom and 7-OH dependence with MAT and clinical support tailored to its distinct withdrawal profile.

Medications We Prescribe

Suboxone (buprenorphine/naloxone) — daily film or tablet for opioid use disorder. Reduces cravings and prevents withdrawal so you can function normally.
Sublocade (extended-release buprenorphine) — once-monthly injection for patients who prefer not to take daily medication.
Brixadi (extended-release buprenorphine) — weekly or monthly injection for opioid use disorder. Flexible dosing intervals.
Vivitrol (naltrexone) — once-monthly injection for alcohol use disorder.
Oral medications for alcohol use disorder — acamprosate, naltrexone, and disulfiram — are also prescribed as daily alternatives to the monthly Vivitrol injection.

Communities We Serve in Meigs County

Decatur (county seat)
Ten Mile
Georgetown
Euchee
Big Spring, Union Grove, and the Watts Bar Lake communities

Insurance & Cost

We accept most major insurance plans including TennCare, Medicaid, BlueCross BlueShield, Cigna, Aetna, Ambetter, and United Healthcare. Most patients pay little to nothing out of pocket. Verify your coverage or call 423-498-2000 before your first visit.

Why Choose Restoration Recovery

CARF accredited (Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities)
Licensed in Tennessee and Georgia
HIPAA and 42 CFR Part 2 compliant — your treatment is confidential
Experienced MAT providers
Four clinic locations with same-week appointments
Telehealth available for follow-up care from home
Integrated hepatitis C treatment for enrolled patients

What We Offer

Services for Meigs County residents

The following services are available at our Cleveland and Soddy-Daisy clinics. Telehealth appointments are also available for follow-up care.

Treatment

Suboxone / MAT

Daily Suboxone film or tablet and comprehensive medication-assisted treatment for opioid use disorder.

Treatment

Sublocade Injections

Once-monthly extended-release buprenorphine injections for established MAT patients — given at our Cleveland clinic, since Soddy-Daisy is oral-only.

Support

Counseling

Individual therapy and evidence-based counseling.

Convenience

Telehealth

Virtual appointments from home for follow-ups, counseling, and medication management.

Integrated

Hepatitis C Treatment

Testing and treatment for patients enrolled in our MAT or IOP programs.

Why Meigs County residents come to us

What we see most often from Tennessee River valley patients

The rural-farm and river-valley generation

Meigs County’s economy still runs on a mix that looks a lot more like 1985 than 2025 — hay and soybean acreage in the valley, pasture-based cattle operations, poultry barns, small family farms, timber, and commuter manufacturing jobs in Athens, Cleveland, and Rhea County. A typical story from this part of the county: a farming injury in the 1990s or 2000s (a hay-baler accident, a kick from a cow, a fall from a tractor or a barn roof), a decade of hydrocodone or oxycodone management through a local provider, a prescriber who retired or tightened up after the 2016 CDC guidelines, and a gap the patient filled first with borrowed pills, then sometimes with something off the street. The clinical picture is usually more straightforward than the patient expects. Buprenorphine at the right dose takes care of craving, keeps the withdrawal from running the day, and lets the original pain conversation resume with whichever primary-care provider is still available in Decatur or across the county line.

An aging population with legacy dependence

Meigs County’s median age is around 46, noticeably older than the state average and a full decade older than the nation. That demographic shape is partly driven by the lakefront retirement communities around Ten Mile and Watts Bar, partly by out-migration of younger workers, and partly by grandparents raising grandchildren because the middle generation is working multiple jobs or in recovery themselves. What it means clinically: we see a lot of patients in their 50s, 60s, and early 70s who have been quietly managing opioid dependence for a decade or more, often on a combination of prescription pills, kratom from a gas station, and whatever else has been available. They are not in crisis, not in the ER, and not on anyone’s radar — but they also are not well, and they know it. A Suboxone, Sublocade, or Brixadi regimen gets these patients back to a stable baseline without disrupting the rest of their household responsibilities, which for many includes caring for a grandchild or a spouse.

Why telehealth is not optional here

Tennessee state law permits MAT clinics to provide Suboxone prescribing and follow-up counseling via telehealth, and small rural counties like Meigs are exactly the population this was designed for. After an initial in-person evaluation at our Cleveland or Soddy-Daisy clinic, follow-up appointments can be by secure video visit. For patients on oral medication, that means the 40-to-60-minute drive can be a one-time trip, since they only need to come back in person if their provider asks. Patients on an injection come to our Cleveland or Chattanooga clinic for each injection. Your medication-management check-ins can happen from your kitchen table. They are weekly at first, then every two weeks, then monthly once you are stable. Counseling sessions can happen from a parked truck during a lunch break, or from a covered porch after morning chores. Even a family member who wants to be part of a session can join from a second device. For a county of roughly 12,300 with no in-county buprenorphine clinic, telehealth is what makes ongoing evidence-based care practical.

The two-clinic advantage

Unlike some rural counties where a single clinic at a single distance is the only option, Meigs County sits between two of ours. If your life points east toward Cleveland, Athens, or the I-75 corridor, our Cleveland clinic (Tuesday and Thursday) is the natural fit. If your life points south toward Chattanooga, Soddy-Daisy, or Hixson, our Soddy-Daisy clinic (Monday and Wednesday) is the better match. Our clinics share identical providers and the same care plan, and all prescribe daily Suboxone — the one difference is that Sublocade, Brixadi, and Vivitrol injections are given at Cleveland or Chattanooga, since Soddy-Daisy is oral-only. Otherwise this is a commute decision, not a clinical one. Your chart travels with you across all our locations, and the transfer takes one phone call.

Patients who can’t afford a care gap

We regularly see patients coming out of local jails or nearby state facilities who know the first 30 days after release are the most dangerous. Tennessee research consistently shows that the post-release fatal-overdose rate is many times higher than the general population. If you or a family member is within 30 days of release, call 423-498-2000 before release day. We can schedule a first in-person visit at either Cleveland or Soddy-Daisy, and the patient leaves that visit with a buprenorphine prescription, so there is no three-week care gap between walking out of the gate and getting into a clinic. This is one of the most important things a family member can do in the month leading up to a loved one’s release.

Insurance that works for rural East Tennessee

Meigs County’s insurance mix skews toward TennCare (BlueCare is the dominant Medicaid managed-care organization), employer-sponsored BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee plans through the Athens and Cleveland industrial employers, and a significant share of self-pay. We accept TennCare, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee, Cigna, Aetna, Ambetter, UnitedHealthcare, and most other major commercial plans. For uninsured residents, self-pay options are available — call us before assuming you can’t afford to start. The cost of untreated opioid use disorder, measured in missed work on the farm, in emergency medical bills, and in lost household income, always runs higher than the cost of a supervised MAT visit.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I really have to drive 40 minutes to Cleveland, or is there something closer?

The two closest Restoration Recovery clinics to Meigs County are Cleveland (about 40 minutes southeast of Decatur via TN-58 and US-11) and Soddy-Daisy (about 45 minutes southwest via TN-58 and TN-60). For the first visit, yes — it is always in person, and we do not currently have a clinic inside Meigs County. After the first visit, though, the large majority of follow-ups can be done from home via HIPAA-compliant telehealth. For most Meigs County patients, the drive is a one-time or occasional trip rather than a routine one.

Which clinic should I choose — Cleveland or Soddy-Daisy?

It depends on which direction your life already points. If you drive to Athens, Cleveland, or the I-75 corridor regularly for work, shopping, or family, our Cleveland clinic (Tuesday and Thursday, 9am–4:30pm) is the natural fit. If you drive toward Chattanooga, Soddy-Daisy, or Hixson more often, our Soddy-Daisy clinic (Monday and Wednesday, 9am–4:30pm) is the better match for daily Suboxone. Both clinics share the same providers organization-wide; for Sublocade, Brixadi, or Vivitrol injections, our Cleveland or Chattanooga clinics administer those, since Soddy-Daisy is oral-only. A third option is our main Chattanooga clinic (Monday through Friday, about 55–60 minutes from Decatur), which is the right pick if your schedule isn’t flexible on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Mondays, or Wednesdays. Call 423-498-2000 and we’ll help you pick.

How important is telehealth for Meigs County patients, specifically?

Very. Meigs County has roughly 12,300 residents spread across a rural county with no in-county MAT clinic. After the initial in-person evaluation, follow-up visits are weekly at first, then every two weeks, then monthly as you stabilize. Meigs County patients on oral medication can do those visits by secure video and do not have to come back to the clinic unless their provider asks. For the Ten Mile and Watts Bar Lake communities in the north of the county, where drive time stretches to an hour, telehealth is often the only practical way to maintain continuity of care without rearranging your whole week. Sublocade and Brixadi injections are administered at our Cleveland or Chattanooga clinic (Soddy-Daisy is oral-only) — about once a month for Sublocade, weekly or monthly for Brixadi — and everything else, including routine drug testing, can usually run remotely.

What about weather — what happens if the roads are bad?

Weather on the back roads of the Tennessee valley is a real consideration, especially in winter and after heavy rain when some valley roads hold water. If you have an in-person appointment scheduled and conditions are genuinely unsafe, call us as early as possible and we will reschedule or switch the appointment to a telehealth visit if it’s the kind of visit that can be done remotely. We would rather flex our schedule than have a patient risk a drive in ice or flooding. For ongoing medication management, telehealth is available — weather rarely affects continuity of care.

Will my treatment be confidential in a small rural county where everyone knows everyone?

Yes. All treatment at Restoration Recovery is protected by HIPAA and 42 CFR Part 2 — the strictest federal privacy standard for substance use treatment. Your records cannot be shared without your written consent, including with family, employers, other providers, or local agencies, except in limited cases the law allows, such as a medical emergency or a court order. For patients worried about running into a neighbor, driving to Cleveland or Soddy-Daisy rather than looking for a provider in Decatur is itself an extra layer of privacy. Telehealth adds another layer — no one sees you walk into a building.

How quickly can I start treatment?

Most Meigs County patients are seen within the same week. Call 423-498-2000 or request an appointment online. Patients starting Suboxone leave their first visit with a prescription and take the first dose at home (Sublocade and Brixadi injections are ordered at the first visit and administered at a follow-up).

What insurance do you accept for Meigs County residents?

We accept TennCare (BlueCare is the dominant managed-care organization in this region), Medicaid, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee, Cigna, Aetna, Ambetter, UnitedHealthcare, and most major commercial plans. For uninsured residents, self-pay options are available — don’t assume you can’t afford to start without calling first. Check your coverage here.

Do I need to stop using opioids before my first appointment?

You do not need to be completely off opioids before coming in. Your provider will evaluate where you are and guide you through a safe transition onto Suboxone. In most cases, you should be in early withdrawal before your first dose, which you take at home. At your first visit, your provider will explain when to take that first dose.

Can follow-up appointments be done from home?

Yes. After your initial in-person evaluation, many follow-up visits can be conducted via secure, HIPAA-compliant telehealth from your phone, tablet, or computer. For Meigs County residents, this is usually the default pattern after the first visit.

Our Clinic Locations

Restoration Recovery operates four outpatient clinics across Tennessee and Georgia. Any of our locations can serve Meigs County residents.

Chattanooga, TN — 6141 Shallowford Rd, Suite 100, Chattanooga, TN 37421 (Mon–Fri, 9am–4:30pm)
Cleveland, TN — 2130 Chambliss Avenue NW, Cleveland, TN 37311 (Tue & Thu, 9am–4:30pm)
Soddy-Daisy, TN — 210 Walmart Drive, Suite 100, Soddy-Daisy, TN 37379 (Mon & Wed, 9am–4:30pm)
Ringgold, GA — 4962 Battlefield Pkwy, Ringgold, GA 30736 (Fri, 9am–4:30pm)

Find treatment near you → · View clinic details →

Resources

Also serving nearby counties: Bradley County, McMinn County, Polk County

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