# “A 100% cure”: what to ask before paying for treatment If poisoning is suspected, contact a local emergency medical service immediately, even if there are no symptoms yet. New sudden confusion by itself or dangerous breathing problems also require immediate local medical contact. [NHS explains the urgency of poisoning](https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/poisoning/) and [sudden confusion](https://www.nhs.uk/symptoms/confusion/); UK numbers do not apply everywhere. Threats, violence or confinement call for a separate local emergency protection route, not an argument with the centre or the person posing the threat. Advertising can be examined after urgent help. ## I. A promise can be examined beyond its slogan “We cure 100%” sounds like a promise about every person who enters care. It needs clarification: what counts as a cure, who is in the percentage, when was the outcome measured, and who checked it? Questioning an advertising claim does not mean a person cannot improve their health or life. It means a decision about money and treatment should not rest on one number. [In 2023, the FTC described a specific US case](https://consumer.ftc.gov/consumer-alerts/2023/03/you-believe-addiction-or-cancer-claims-read): according to the agency, one clinic advertised quick, painless recovery across several addictions without adequate supporting research. The complaint and settlement in that case are not a list of poor centres elsewhere. They illustrate the difference between advertising and a verified clinical outcome. ## II. First ask what was counted as success Completing a course, reporting no use on discharge day, sleeping better, continuing work and doing well a year later are different outcomes. A person may gain something important even if their path does not fit a “forever” slogan. But “everyone was cured” should not quietly become “everyone who completed the course received a certificate.” Ask for a plain-language outcome definition: what was measured, by whom, how long after starting and after leaving? Are there verified results after participants leave the centre? What happens if use resumes: is reassessment and support available, or is another paid course the only offer? [NIAAA's US guidance on finding alcohol treatment for adults](https://alcoholtreatment.niaaa.nih.gov/FAQs-searching-alcohol-treatment) describes signs of higher-quality care while explicitly making no guarantee for each person. ## III. A percentage needs a denominator and a time frame A figure can look impressive if only people who answered a follow-up call are counted, while the programme does not say how many started, left early or could not be reached. A practical question is: “How many people entered the calculation, how many were known at the chosen date, and how many were missing?” Another is: “Are repeat paid courses counted as separate successes?” Families need not conduct a study; they can ask the centre to show its counting method. If the centre claims to outperform another approach, ask whether the groups were comparable and where the comparison was checked. Individual testimonials may tell truthful stories, but cannot show the outcome for everyone who began. Poor data do not prove that nobody benefited; they limit what a promotional percentage can establish. ## IV. A licence and an attractive certificate answer other questions A licence, accreditation, a staff member's diploma and a celebrity testimonial are different things. They may tell you about permission to operate, training or process standards; none alone proves that a programme cures everyone. [NIAAA distinguishes licensing from accreditation in its US guide to alcohol treatment](https://alcoholtreatment.niaaa.nih.gov/how-to-find-alcohol-treatment/10-questions-for-alcohol-treatment-programs) and suggests checking current status and staff qualifications. That is US guidance, not a universal licensing law. Ask who assesses medical needs, who handles complications, who provides psychological care and what current qualifications those actual staff members hold where you live. If a competent local register exists, check current status there. A name in an advert or an old certificate does not show that the clinician is available today. Do not draw a clinical-quality conclusion at home from a stamp or rating alone. ## V. Ask about a care plan, not a “secret method” [WHO and UNODC present international standards](https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/international-standards-for-the-treatment-of-drug-use-disorders) to support evidence-based and ethical systems for drug use disorders. Their landing page does not say that every local centre has implemented them. It is reasonable to ask how a centre assesses physical and mental health, other needs and preferences, changes a plan if someone gets worse, and links people to further care after the course. A distinctive method is not the problem by itself. Refusing to explain its aims, risks, limits and alternatives is a concern, particularly if a person is urged to abandon all prescribed care for the “only path.” [In 2018 the FDA and FTC warned about unsupported claims for specific unapproved opioid cessation products](https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-ftc-warn-companies-selling-illegal-unapproved-opioid-cessation-products-using-deceptive-claims): delaying appropriate care can cause harm. That warning is neither a judgment on every medicine nor permission for families to stop prescriptions themselves. ## VI. Cost, consent, information and leaving Before paying, clarify the total cost: what is included, what costs extra, when another paid course may be proposed, and any refund terms. Ask how an adult can decline a procedure, receive understandable risk information and leave the programme; contracts and local rules need checking in the relevant jurisdiction. If a centre presses for an immediate signature, debt or transfer of money before answering basic questions, a person can pause the commercial decision and discuss it with an independent competent professional, provided urgent medical care is not delayed. Ask who will see treatment information, what local exceptions to confidentiality apply, whether care is available in the needed language, how long the wait is and who is actually accepting people now. Neither the advert nor this article can promise absolute secrecy, free treatment, a place or a refund. A person does not have to earn the right to seek medical help through perfect sobriety or readiness to pay for the whole course. ## VII. Children and relatives need not prove a centre's claim A child should not monitor substance use, interpret negotiations, keep medicines, persuade an adult to seek treatment or testify that a programme “worked.” If an adult needs care away from home, a specific capable adult must actually take responsibility for the child. A call to the centre or a future appointment is not supervision. When there are threats or violence, protection for adults and children is separate from treatment advertising; do not make confrontation or a joint conversation a prerequisite. Do not stop prescribed medicine yourself to obtain a “drug-free” certificate. [The FDA's communication about benzodiazepines](https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/fda-requiring-boxed-warning-updated-improve-safe-use-benzodiazepine-drug-class) distinguishes possible therapeutic benefit, physical adaptation and risks; abrupt stopping can be dangerous. This does not make every prescription an addiction, and it does not remove the need to assess risk with the prescriber. A centre can explain how it coordinates care, but a slogan cannot replace individual medical assessment. ## VIII. If a centre gives evasive answers A polite refusal to explain the outcome, follow-up period, price or staff qualifications leaves a family unable to verify “100%.” You can keep the answers already given, compare available options and discuss them with an independent professional. There is no need to obtain private data, secretly test staff or experiment on a person to prove the advert false. Conversely, one good answer, a licence or a few testimonials do not guarantee an outcome. If help is needed now and no ideal centre is available, ask an existing local medical service about the next real contact and alternatives. Waiting time, price, language, accessibility and age rules vary. For suspected poisoning, new sudden confusion or dangerous breathing problems, do not wait while comparing programmes: contact a local emergency medical service immediately. For violence or confinement, seek separate local emergency protection. ## IX. Five optional questions about what is already known This is not a score or a test for a clinic. Ask these questions if there is time and a safe way to communicate; no answers are needed before emergency help. 1. Does the advert promise course completion, a temporary change or a verified outcome afterward? 2. Does it name the number who started, the follow-up period and those whose outcomes are unknown? 3. Which actual clinicians handle medical risks, and what does the centre do if someone deteriorates? 4. Are the full price, repeat-course terms, consent, data and leaving rules known? 5. What real contact is available after the course if the person needs help again? “I do not know yet” is a valid answer. Asking for clear conditions helps with a decision but does not oblige anyone to choose one centre. Hope for improvement is compatible with an honest account of the limits of a promise. ## Sources and limits - [FTC, Before you believe addiction or cancer claims](https://consumer.ftc.gov/consumer-alerts/2023/03/you-believe-addiction-or-cancer-claims-read): 2023 US consumer alert about a particular complaint and settlement, not a review of all centres. - [FDA/FTC, warning on unapproved opioid cessation products](https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-ftc-warn-companies-selling-illegal-unapproved-opioid-cessation-products-using-deceptive-claims): US release dated 24 January 2018 about specific product marketing, not every prescription. - [NIAAA, FAQs: Searching for Alcohol Treatment](https://alcoholtreatment.niaaa.nih.gov/FAQs-searching-alcohol-treatment): official US FAQ about finding adult alcohol treatment, date not established in the read section; quality signs are not guarantees. - [NIAAA, Ten Questions for Alcohol Treatment Programs](https://alcoholtreatment.niaaa.nih.gov/how-to-find-alcohol-treatment/10-questions-for-alcohol-treatment-programs): US consumer guide, date not established in the read section; its list of questions is not reproduced. - [WHO/UNODC, International Standards for the Treatment of Drug Use Disorders](https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/international-standards-for-the-treatment-of-drug-use-disorders): publication landing page dated 31 March 2020; full PDF not read, local implementation unverified. - [FDA, benzodiazepine boxed warning](https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/fda-requiring-boxed-warning-updated-improve-safe-use-benzodiazepine-drug-class): US regulator communication dated 23 September 2020 about one medicine class; not a stopping schedule. - [NHS, Sudden confusion](https://www.nhs.uk/symptoms/confusion/): UK patient page reviewed 28 May 2024; new sudden confusion needs no second symptom to be urgent. - [NHS, Poisoning](https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/poisoning/): UK patient page reviewed 12 June 2025; suspicion requires immediate contact before symptoms. ## Tags cure promises, treatment advertising, checking a centre, treatment outcomes, quality of care, informed consent, programme cost, staff credentials, continuing care, prescribed medicines, emergency care, child safety ## About the authors Andrey Zarinsh is the author and founder of United Wisdom. He explores inner transformation, the unity of traditions, intercultural dialogue, and contemporary spiritual discipline. Instagram: @andrey.zarinsh. Maria Evilkut is a co-author of United Wisdom. Alongside her research, she seeks to test these ideas in practice and observe how the principles of unity and mutual understanding work in real life among people and cultures. Instagram: @ilkutki. ## Content date 15 October 2026. English version.