Mental health costs in the UK are due to 'spiral' according to a report from the King's Fund. This BBC story quotes Niall Dickson of the King's Fund: "The fact that we are living longer is cause for celebration, but it will mean that the health and social care systems will have to cope with a dramatic increase in the number of people suffering from dementia."
The Paying the Price research reveals that mental illness in England cost £50 billion in 2007.
Co-author of the report, Professor Martin Knapp, is quoted on the King's Fund website: "We found that paying for more people to be treated would create net savings as reductions in lost employment costs would outweigh treatment costs. With a third of adults with depression and a half with anxiety disorders not in touch with services there is significant potential to treat more people with those illnesses and make savings because of the boost to the workforce. The problem is that the costs of care fall largely to the health service whereas the economic benefits mostly accrue elsewhere - to employers, the taxman, the benefits system and the criminal justice system. The government, the NHS, social services and employers need to extend efforts to help people with mental health needs who are of working age but not in employment to get back to work."
Wednesday 28 May 2008
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