The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) released annual survey results revealing that there are mental health and substance use epidemics currently occurring in the U.S.
DHHS’s Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s annual survey results show that:
- about one in four adults in the U.S. had a mental illness in 2021, and
- more than 16% of the country’s population, or more than 46 million people, met the criteria for a substance use disorder.
National Safety Council (NSC) statistics reveal that almost 9% of working adults nationwide have a substance use disorder.
In its response to these statistics, the NSC said, “More can be done by employers to ensure employees and their families get the help they need to live their fullest lives.”
The organization “stands ready to assist employers in establishing policies that support worker mental health and substance use treatment, and offers extensive resources to help them do just that.”
NSC resources that address employee mental health and substance use disorders include:
- Opioids at Work Employer Toolkit
- Impairment Recognition and Response Training for Supervisors
- Substance Use Cost Calculator for Employers
- Mental Health Cost Calculator for Employers, and
- Resources to address additional causes of impairment at work including fatigue and mental distress.
The organization said it will:
- continue to call on employers to develop recovery-friendly workplaces
- establish policies that support worker mental health and substance use recovery
- end addiction stigma, and
- provide necessary resources the workers in our country need.
NSC said it will also “continue working across public and private sectors to address the nation’s mental health crisis and drug overdose epidemics in order to keep people safe both on and off the job.”
