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Mental health promotion

Costs

The estimated annual cost of mental illness in England is £77.4 billion. 1

This comprises:

  • £12.5 billion for care provided by the NHS, local authorities, privately funded services, family and friends
  • £23.1 billion in lost output to the economy caused by people being unable to work (paid and unpaid)
  • £41.8 billion in the human costs of reduced quality of life (and loss of life) among those experiencing a mental health problem.

Only 28% of adults with a long-term mental health problem are in work - this is the lowest employment rate for any of the main groups of disabled people. 2 State benefits for adults with mental health problems add an estimated £9.5 billion to the costs outlined above. 1

The costs of people without mental illness but who are not flourishing have not yet been recorded, but there are economic costs in terms of time off work, heart disease, role limitation as a result of languishing mental health and likely increased levels of mortality.

References

  1. Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health. The economic and social costs of mental illness. London: Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health, 2003. Available at: External Link
  2. Meltzer H, Singleton N, Lee A, Bebbington P, Brugh T, Jenkins R. 2002 The social and economic circumstances of adults with mental disorders. London: DoH, 2002. Available at: External Link