Mental health, the first expense item of Medicare

In France, 1 person in 5 is affected each year by a mental disorder (depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, etc.). As a result, mental health has become the main item of expenditure for Medicare, i.e. 23.3 billion euros in 2020. If we group together “psychiatric illnesses” and all “chronic treatments with psychotropic drugs “, this amounts to almost 14% of the total envelope, for an average cost of 2800 euros per person. By adding the direct cost of treatment and the indirect cost linked to lower employment rates and a loss of productivity, the OECD even estimates the economic weight of these diseases at more than 4% of GDP.

However, this burden could be greatly reduced by the implementation of appropriate policies. Conversely, without action, it can only get worse. “With the aging of the population, more than 21 million people are already living with a form of senile dementia in OECD member countries. And with the pandemic, the unrest…