Joint Commission
The Joint Commission is a US accreditor of health care organizations whose Behavioral Health Care and Human Services program accredits addiction treatment, mental health and related services against its published standards.
Also called The Joint Commission, JCAHO, Joint Commission accreditation
- Last reviewed
- 3 sources, linked
- 4 related terms
What it means
Accreditation is earned through an on-site survey and kept through a full review at least every three years, and it sits alongside a state license rather than replacing it. The Joint Commission publishes a locator for accredited substance use disorder treatment providers, so a claim is easy for anyone to verify.
Accredited organizations may display the Gold Seal of Approval under the Joint Commission's publicity guidelines. Only accredited or certified organizations may use it, the seal should link back to the Joint Commission's website when it appears online, and an organization with sites or services that are not accredited has to say clearly which ones are. The guidelines add that an organization which materially misleads the public about its accreditation may have to take corrective action or risk losing it, and that no organization may claim to be the only accredited one in its area.
Why it matters for your website
Show the Gold Seal the way the guidelines ask, link it to the Joint Commission's site, and say in text which programs and locations are accredited. A seal in the footer of every page of a multi-site group implies more than it should, and a line calling yourself the only accredited center in town breaks the guidelines outright.
Put accreditation where a family decides: on the admissions and insurance pages, not only the About page. On a YMYL topic like addiction treatment it is one of the strongest trust signals a page can carry.
Sources
The facts on this page about a law, a regulator, a clinical standard or a platform come from these sources. Each link opens the original in a new tab.
- Joint CommissionBehavioral Health Care and Human Services Accreditation Program (opens in a new tab)
- Joint CommissionPromote Your Accreditation (The Gold Seal of Approval and Guidelines for Use; Media Guidelines) (opens in a new tab)
- Joint CommissionSearch for Substance Use Disorder Treatment Providers (opens in a new tab)
Last reviewed
This entry explains a rule so you can plan a website around it. It is not legal advice: for a decision about your own program, ask a healthcare attorney.
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