Mental health issues are increasing across Canada, leading to a rise in long-term disability (LTD) claims, with the economy, age, gender, industry, employer size and even where you live in Canada all having an effect on claims, says a new Sun Life report.

The report, called Designed for Health, says 59% of working Canadians report they have experienced a mental health issue, up 7% from 2017. These mental health issues are driving LTD claims, which rose 13% from 2016 to 2019.

Sun Life looked at what might be causing this rise in claims and came up with a number of suggestions.

One may be that “social isolation” has increased with more people living alone, a stronger reliance on technology and sprawling urbanization.

Many people also now work from home or have contract and temporary positions, making employment more uncertain and precarious, says the report. Up to 30% of the Canadian workforce is now engaged in the so-called gig economy – basically non-permanent employment.

It also suggests that the digital world and the frequent use of social media are associated with a rise in the risk of anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts.

On top of that, mental health issues are now being discussed more frequently, leading people to talk about the condition they have and seek the help they need.

But one of the biggest associations with a rise in claims has to do with the health of the economy, says the report.

“As the economy improves, LTD claims tend to rise, then fall during economic declines. This may seem counterintuitive, but the hypothesis is that during more difficult economic times, people experience increased stress (due to precarious employment and financial stress, for example). This increased stress leads to anxiety and depression – but the employee is able to keep functioning in the short term. As the economy improves, many employees are left depleted or ‘burned out.’

“A healthier economy may also give people a sense of safety in terms of not losing their job. This may cause them to be more likely to go through their workplace group benefits to help improve their mental health, including applying for a disability claim.”

Other information from the Sun Life study:

· Women are almost 1.5 times more likely than men to have a disability claim and twice more likely to have a disability claim that is mental health related.

· The incidence of LTD rises with age, possibly because chronic conditions increase in incidence and severity as we age. Claim incidence is higher among employees between 35-54 when life pressures, like career, family and financial pressures are often at their highest.

· LTD mental health incidence rates in public administration and retail industries are about 30% and 20% higher than the average respectively, potentially because they require frequent and sometimes difficult interactions with the public.

· Employers with 1000+ employees have twice the incidence of mental health claims than employers with fewer than 50 employees.

· Mental health claims in Eastern Canada (Maritimes and Quebec) make up 42% of all LTD claims, while central Canada has 25% and the West 20%. Sun Life posits that one reason for the higher claims in Eastern Canada is because Quebec workplaces are more likely to have mental health training programs for employees.

Sun Life says it offers three leading innovations designed to break down barriers to effective treatment and recovery.

1.Virtual cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is a form of psychological therapy that focuses on the way people think, feel and behave and how these three relate to each other. It’s proven highly effective, first-line treatment for depression and anxiety.

2. Pharmacogenomics analyses a person’s genetic makeup to find out how well they will respond to a drug. This reduces the trial and error process of finding the right drug to alleviate stress and anxiety.

3. Sun Life has piloted virtual independent medical exams that allow people to have their exams done virtually rather than cause stressful in-person medical exams.