A population-based cohort study of 991 445 Canadian adults, including 156 296 with a mental health diagnosis, 3-year adjusted mean costs were $38 250 for those with and $22 280 for those without a mental health disorder, a 71.7% increase. [1] Presence of psychiatric comorbidity was associated with higher rates of hospitalization and emergency department visits, including when considering only visits associated with chronic disease and ambulatory care–sensitive conditions. Only 11.4% of the admissions of patients with mental health comorbidity were directly due to their psychiatric condition.
1 Sporinova B, Manns B, Tonelli M, et al. Association of Mental Health Disorders With Health Care Utilization and Costs Among Adults With Chronic Disease. JAMA Netw Open 2019;2:e199910. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2019.9910
