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Mental health demand rises at employers, but spending falls 7% in 2025
A survey found 73% of large employers increased mental health and substance use utilization in 2025, even as average mental health benefit spending dropped about 7% year over year.
Insurance Business reports that 73% of large employers said they increased utilization of mental health and substance use disorder services in 2025, and another 17% expected demand to keep rising. The outlet also points to a separate industry readout showing employer spending on mental health resources fell roughly 7% year over year in 2025, widening the gap between growing demand and reduced investment.
That mismatch is creating pressure on brokers during benefit renewals, with the treatment gap in the US sitting behind many employer conversations. The story cites SAMHSA data showing 61.5 million adults, or 23.4% of the US population, had any mental illness in 2024, but only about 52% received treatment, leaving roughly 29.5 million adults with a diagnosable condition without care.
Insurance Business says insurance coverage is a key driver of whether people access treatment and notes that coverage-focused platforms have expanded by lowering friction to in-network care. It cites Grow Therapy, which reported facilitating 7 million visits in 2025 and raised a $150 million Series D in March at a $3 billion valuation, while claiming coverage of 220 million insured Americans through partnerships with more than 125 health plans.
The outlet contrasts this approach with the employee assistance program, or EAP, which many employers still use as an anchor. It cites a Prudential Group Insurance survey that found 59% of employers offer EAPs, but more than half of eligible employees have never used one, with barriers including confidentiality concerns, uncertainty about coverage, and stigma.