The report, “The projected costs and economic impact of mental health inequities in the United States,” points to a strong link between mental health and chronic conditions, creating a need for an equity-centered approach from government, healthcare and business sectors.
"Lower-income individuals bear a disproportionate burden of chronic conditions, exacerbating their economic challenges, while racial and ethnic disparities persist in healthcare. . . .Each of these key issues . . . may not only lead to unnecessary healthcare spending but also contribute to productivity loss, especially among marginalized groups that face higher rates of unemployment due to mental health challenges," the report says.
It also notes an estimated 57% of people in underserved populations face difficulty accessing care.
“I see the correlation between how chronic conditions can exacerbate mental health challenges and economic strains that impact my patients’ overall health," Dr. Jay Bhatt, a Deloitte executive and practicing physician in Chicago, said in a press release. "With my patient experiences coupled with the findings from this report, there’s no denying that there is an urgent need to make mental health more visible and prioritize actions to improve health outcomes and reduce costs associated with managing these conditions."
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Bhatt is the managing director of the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions and Deloitte Health Equity Institute.
The report suggests finding cost savings by doing three things:
• Increasing access to high-quality mental healthcare for underserved populations
• Integrating mental healthcare into chronic disease management programs
• Investing in preventive mental health services to identify and address issues early.
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Improving mental health, the report says, can help decrease other health issues such as the prevalence of premature death, the number of emergency department visits and productivity loss due to cardiovascular disease.
"In recognizing the compelling correlation between brain health and chronic conditions, we determined that in order to have a more complete picture of the costs of mental health in America, we needed to understand the present and future costs of inequities in mental health and physical health conditions," Daniel Dawes, founding dean of the School of Global Health, said in the release. "We urge employers, clinicians, researchers, advocates, policymakers and community leaders to unite in catalyzing actionable solutions to address these pervasive and increasingly costly mental health inequities."
This story first appeared in Crain's Chicago Business.
