Mental Health Parity

AI summary

Petitioners say millions of Canadians face financial barriers to counselling, psychotherapy, addictions treatment and other community-based mental health services, and that nearly one in five Canadians experiences a mental health problem each year. They assert Canadians often pay out of pocket, rely on inadequate private insurance, face long wait times, seek help only through emergency departments in crisis, or go without care, and that untreated mental illness imposes substantial human and economic costs. The petition asks the federal government to work with provinces, territories, Indigenous partners and other stakeholders to establish parity between mental and physical health, provide stable long-term federal funding to expand access nationwide, and pass Bill C-280 (the Mental Health Parity Act) to create a national framework ensuring care is based on need rather than ability to pay or location.

AI summaries describe petitioners’ requests and claims. Consult the official record for the full text.

Official petition

Petition to the Government of Canada Millions of Canadians continue to face financial barriers when seeking counselling, psychotherapy, addictions treatment, and other community-based mental health services; Nearly one in five Canadians experiences a mental health problem or illness each year, and about half of Canadians will experience mental illness by age 40; Canadians are too often forced to pay out of pocket, rely on inadequate private insurance, endure lengthy wait times, seek help only in crisis through emergency departments, or go without care altogether; The human and economic costs of untreated mental illness are profound, placing growing pressure on hospitals, first responders, families, workplaces, and communities, while costing Canada’s economy billions of dollars annually; Evidence shows that investing in timely, community-based mental health care improves outcomes, reduces long-term costs, and strengthens the sustainability of our public healthcare system; and Canadians overwhelmingly support universal access to mental health care and have called for mental health to be treated with the same importance as physical health. We, the undersigned, citizens and residents of Canada, call upon the Government of Canada to: 1. Work with provinces, territories, Indigenous partners, healthcare professionals, people with lived and living experience, and community organizations to establish parity between mental and physical health in Canada’s universal healthcare system; 1. Work with provinces, territories, Indigenous partners, healthcare professionals, people with lived and living experience, and community organizations to establish parity between mental and physical health in Canada’s universal healthcare system; 2. Provide stable, long-term federal funding to expand access to medically necessary mental health, addictions, and substance use services in every region of the country; and 3. Pass Bill C-280, the Mental Health Parity Act, to create a national framework that ensures Canadians can access medically necessary mental health, addictions, and substance use care based on need, not their ability to pay or where they live.

Government response

No government response is available yet.