Abstract.Curson's analysis of the growth of private for profit treatment of substance abuse is seen as exaggerated. The main growth in the 1980s was over 50% in the voluntary charitable sector. His criticism of lay' counsellors ignores the responsibility of health care professionals, to train and supervise them. Curson's criticism of the effectiveness of treatment in general indicates he is not well informed and his reference to Minnesota Model outcome research and the philosophy of the mutual help movement of AA is misleading.