American Addiction Centers logo
American Addiction Centers
Aliso Viejo, California

VIOP Substance Use Counselor

Addiction CounselorIncludes callNo weekendsFull-Time

Compensation

Pay not listed

The week · per this posting · Monday – Friday

Ask the employer about the pay range, the work setting, nights and shift pattern and time off.

Posted 13m ago · Verified live

Job Description

Company Summary

If you are searching for a fulfilling place to develop your career and an opportunity to make a difference in helping others, then keep reading on. Here at AAC, we have a progressive culture; we listen to your ideas, value a work/life balance, invest in education, and we foster trust and respect for all individuals.

Our exceptional comp and strong benefits include company matching 401K, medical, dental, vision and life insurance. We are looking for our future leaders, who are not only going to fill the qualifications for this job description, but who are going to exceed expectations.

Be a part of a team whose mission is to provide quality, compassionate, and innovative care to adults struggling with addiction and co-occurring mental health disorders.

Our purpose and passion are to empower patients, their families, and our communities by helping individuals achieve recovery and optimal wellness of the mind, body, and spirit.

This position is onsite running Virtual IOP's. Schedule for this role is Monday-Friday from 1:00 PM-9:30PM PST.

Responsibilities

Job Summary

Responsible for providing individual, group and family counseling. Conduct clinical assessments for new patients and on-going required assessments. Counselor II will demonstrate expertise in therapeutic interventions, treatment modalities and utilize evidence based practices.

Counselor II will participate in Treatment team and provide service coordination as needed for patients. Counselor II will advocate and communicate with the UR department on all aspects of patient care.

American Addiction Centers strives to ensure that all of our patients receive the most comprehensive care to address the issues that may impede their recovery.

Duties and Responsibilities

  • Provide intervention, assessments, treatment planning, triage and individual/group counseling.
  • Initiate and provide family counseling services.
  • Provide clinical services to all patients on caseload and assist when needed with other patients as assigned by clinical manager.
  • Participate in weekly treatment team meeting and program staff meetings.
  • Ensure that all documentation necessary meet contract, licensure, accreditation and standards for services in a timely manner following the AAC’s documentation policy guidelines.
  • Communicate efficiently with other departments to ensure the best care for patient.
  • Provide clinical services to outpatient and inpatient adult population.
  • Understand and abide by State Department standards, facility accreditation, AAC’s policy and procedures.
  • Demonstate dependability and adaptability with patients and staff.
  • Maintains confidentiality of patient and company information.
  • Abide by the standards of HIPAA and 42 CFR Part 2 guidelines.
  • Assists in monitoring and managing patient community as a therapeutic milieu.

Qualifications

Education/Experience

  • Master’s Degree in Behavioral Sciences Required (social work, counseling or psychology).
  • AMFT, ACSW or APCC and actively working towards licensure and/or certification in alcohol and drug abuse.
  • Minimum of 2 years experience in a behavioral healthcare field.
  • Experience working with substance abuse, addictions, mental health, cognitive behavior treatment and motivational interviewing.
  • Knowledge of utilizing electronic health record software and documentation.
  • Knowledge of ASAM criteria.
  • Counseling experience with adults, an understanding of psychotropic medications and symptoms and effects.
  • Ability to read, write and interpret written information, type documentation, present information to groups and participate in meetings.
  • Working knowledge of Microsoft & Google Products.

Physical Requirements

  • AAC is committed to principles of equal opportunities for all employees. The Company will provide reasonable accommodations that are necessary to comply with State and Federal disability discrimination laws
  • Prolonged sitting at a desk
  • Must be able to lift 15 pounds at a time

American Addiction Centers is an equal opportunity employer. American Addiction Centers prohibits employment practices that discriminate against individuals or groups of employees on the basis of age, color disability, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy, veteran or military status, genetic information or any other category deemed protected by state and/or federal law.

Qualifications

Education
Master's degree (postgraduate degree)
Experience
2+ years of experience

Key Skills

Substance abuse counselingClinical assessmentIndividual counselingCognitive behavioral therapyElectronic health recordsCrisis triageHIPAA compliance

Addiction Medicine — Counselor Career Context

Of the 50 active Substance Use / Addiction Counselor listings this role was benchmarked against, 62% are remote, 16% have no call, 62% require no weekends.

The cost-of-living index for California is 110.7 (US average = 100; BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)). 63.6% of California clinicians report burnout symptoms in WeekdayDoc's Burnout Index (2026-01 data).

How many Substance Use / Addiction Counselor jobs are remote?
MeasureThis jobMarket
Listed paynot listedSubstance Use / Addiction Counselor median $65k (middle half $53k–$75k)17 comparable listings, Nov 2026
Cost of livingCalifornia index 110.7US average = 100BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)
Substance Use / Addiction Counselor listings in California1,053 active13,528 nationallylive on WeekdayDoc, Nov 2026
Work settingon-sitepeers: 62% remote · 16% no call · 62% no weekends50 benchmarked listings
Sign-on & loan repaymentnot statedCalifornia Counselor listings: 11% state a sign-on bonus (median $3k) · 9% offer loan repayment1,000 active listings, Nov 2026
New Addiction Medicine listings462 in the last 30 days259 the 30 days before (+78%)U.S., first seen on WeekdayDoc, Nov 2026
Sources: WeekdayDoc live listing index, BEA Regional Price Parities (2024); as of Nov 2026. Same values as the Weekday Verdict and Market Insights on this page.

Work-Life Balance Analysis

WeekdayDoc's proprietary algorithm rates VIOP Substance Use Counselor at American Addiction Centers a 6.0 out of 10 for work-life balance — classified as good. This places the position in the top 35% of all Addiction Medicine counselor listings evaluated on our platform. Contributing factors include no weekend requirements.

Top Counselor Jobs

50 matches · ranked by pay

Salary Distribution

50 jobs · 43 employers
14
<$100k
18
$100k-115k
8
$115k-130k
9
$130k-145k
1
$146k

Annual compensation range

Benefits & Perks

35 jobs
401k / retirement match
91% this job
CME allowance
46%
Sign-on bonus
43%
Loan repayment
11%
PSLF eligible
6%

Share of similar jobs offering each benefit

#1

Licensed Therapist

BlueSky Telepsych · Concord, North Carolina

$60-$70/hr
#2

Employee Assistance Program - Clinical Counselor (must reside in California)

CVS Health · California

$67k-$143k
#3

Licensed Mental Health Therapist

$123k-$141k
#4

Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT)

$123k-$141k
+ 48 more · ranked by pay

Work-life snapshot

median 6.1this job 6.0
Better work-life than 50% of Substance Use / Addiction Counselor listings

Listing-based score, 0–10, across 1,008 comparable listings. Shaded area = the share scoring below this one.

  • No weekends
  • Includes call
American Addiction Centers logo

About American Addiction Centers

Hospitals and Health Care
Brentwood, Tennessee
501-1,000 employees

Benefits & Perks

Medical, Dental, Vision, Life Insurance
401(k) with company match

Living in Aliso Viejo

Typical 3-bedroom home value
$1.02M
Typical market rent
$3,484/mo
Residents’ average commute
25 min
Metro price indexU.S. average = 100
113.6
State income tax
Up to 13.3%
Sources & methodology

Sources: Zillow home values (Sep 2026), Zillow market rents (Sep 2026), U.S. Census ACS 2024 five-year.

BEA 2024 · Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro prices. Housing figures are city-level.

City-level figures. Not a cost-of-living guarantee.