The state of mental health in Canada? It’s alarming, a new CMHA report finds

Nov 20, 2024

Our mental health system is failing people. CMHA’s new report has the data to back that up, and people using Canada’s healthcare system feel it too

Through a first-of-its-kind report, the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) is providing an in-depth look at the mental health system in Canada—with all its cracks and failings—and how people are faring, in every province and territory. What it reveals is troubling.

Among the findings of The State of Mental Health in Canada 2024 is that no jurisdiction is spending enough on mental health, in part because they’re not obliged to. Provinces and territories are only spending an average of 6.3% of their overall health budgets on mental health, which leaves Canada lagging behind many peer countries (15% in France, 11% in Germany, 9% in the UK and Sweden). This doesn’t even meet the level of spending called for in Canada’s own, stale-dated mental health strategy.

In 2024-25, Ontario will spend approximately $2 billion on mental health, which amounts to 5.9% of the overall health budget (compared to the national average of 6.3%). 

In total, this deep-dive report showcases 24 indicators of the state of mental health in Canada, from how much is being spent on care, to rates of suicide and levels of discrimination against people with mental health concerns—all broken down province and territory.

The most recent statistics from the report show that the mental health of Canadians is three times worse than before COVID-19 and millions of people can’t get the care they need.  

Furthermore, “Where you live matters,” said Dr. Leyna Lowe, National Senior Research and Policy Analyst, CMHA, and the lead author of the report. “The report tells us that people receive drastically different care depending on their home province or territory, and that people across Canada are doing worse in some places, particularly in the north and in rural parts of Canada, and distress is higher among Indigenous and racialized populations.”

As it stands, accessing mental health care in Canada is often a privilege when it should be a fundamental right. CMHA’s report shows that millions of people in need of support aren’t getting it—an alarming reality with real consequences. 

“I was admitted to the hospital for suicidal ideation and their only goal was to stop me, not to ensure that I had help or support afterwards to get to the root of the issue,” said Caroline, a member of CMHA’s National Council of Persons with Lived Experience. “There was zero follow-up once I was released from the hospital; just ‘bonne chance’ and a card with some numbers to call.”

“At CMHA Ottawa, our experience is similar to what we’re seeing throughout the province of Ontario, and indeed, across Canada,” said Dr. Susan Farrell, CEO of CMHA Ottawa. “We’ve observed an ongoing staffing crisis in the sector, insufficient financial assistance for the most marginalized individuals in our community, the demoralizing effects of stigma, and the rise of dangerous rhetoric surrounding harm reduction and addictions and its real-world consequences. We’ve also seen an escalation of the opioid crisis and increasing toxicity in the unregulated drug supply, chronic homelessness and a housing supply pushed to its brink, and countless stressors in the day-to-day lives of the people we serve.”

However, The State of Mental Health in Canada 2024 also highlights promising innovations, like universal, publicly funded mental health care in Nova Scotia, significant investments in mental health promotion in B.C., addictions treatment in Alberta, mobile crisis teams across three provinces, and Inuit paraprofessionals providing culturally appropriate care in Nunavut. And through a series of actionable recommendations, this report gives decision makers a roadmap to better mental health care.

At CMHA Ottawa, our branch is one of the largest providers of Housing First in Canada. Additionally, the diverse programs and services offered at our branch provide fertile ground for important research and evaluation projects that make lasting contributions to the field of mental health and addictions services. Every year, our clients, frontline staff, program managers, senior leadership, and peer experts work with students on research and evaluation projects and clinical practice placements that help inform local health policy, improve care at CMHA Ottawa and other agencies, provide an opportunity for those with lived experience to help shape effective interventions, build capacity among staff by using evidence-informed tools and implementing evidence-based practices, train the professionals of tomorrow, and contribute to our understanding of socio-environmental factors that affect the inequities experienced by the people we serve.

“Mental health has been profoundly neglected under universal health care since Medicare was introduced forty years ago,” said Sarah Kennell, National Director of Public Policy, CMHA. “Six federal governments in a row have failed to deliver free, universal mental health care and Canadians are living with—and sometimes dying from—the consequences.”

CMHA is calling on the federal government to write mental health care into federal law. The federal government must also prioritize the mental health and well-being of Canadians by investing 12% of health care spending in mental health, addictions, and substance use services. By doing so, we can support a future where mental health care is a fundamental right for everyone.

For more information about the report and to learn about the state of mental health in your community, please visit cmha.ca/somh.

Key statistics from The State of Mental Health in Canada 2024:

• On average, provinces and territories are only spending 6.3% of their overall health budgets on mental health. They should be spending 12%.
• 2.5 million people with mental health needs in Canada reported that they weren’t getting adequate care. That’s about equal to the population of Manitoba and Saskatchewan combined.
• Canadians report having “poor” or “fair” mental health three times more often than before the pandemic (26% in 2021 compared to 8.9% in 2019). 
• An alarming 38% of Indigenous Peoples reported their mental health was “poor” or “fair.
• Fifty-seven percent (57%) of young people (aged 18-24) who had early signs of a mental illness said that cost was an obstacle to getting mental health services.
• Only 50% of people with mental health disabilities are employed and a significant number who aren’t, depend on income supports that keep them in poverty.
• Canada is failing to collect key information about the mental health system and population mental health, while existing data is variable in quality and coverage across the country.

The Canadian Mental Health Association, Ottawa Branch (CMHA Ottawa), is an independent, community-based non-profit organization that provides services for eligible individuals in the Ottawa area with severe and persistent mental illness and/or substance use disorder, many of whom are experiencing chronic homelessness or are vulnerably housed. CMHA Ottawa is dedicated to promoting good mental health, developing and implementing sustainable support systems and services, and encouraging public action to strengthen community mental health services and related policies and legislation.

For media inquiries:
Patrick Jodoin, Manager, Communications and Stakeholder Relations
CMHA Ottawa
613-737-7791 ext. 135 [email protected]