The case for psychological treatment centres

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Abstract
The cost of depression and anxiety According to the World Health Organization, half of all people with ill health in Western Europe have mental illness.8 9 10 It accounts for as much suffering as all physical illnesses put together. And the bulk of these mental illnesses are depression and anxiety. There is also a huge economic cost, because depression and anxiety make it much more difficult, or impossible, to do a job. And those capable of working are likely to have high rates of sickness absence.1 The resulting loss of output can be calculated as £17bn (€24bn, $30bn), or 1.5% of UK gross domestic product.11 Much of this cost falls on the Exchequer, which loses in consequence roughly £9bn in benefit payments to mentally ill people and in reduced tax receipts. There are now more than one million mentally ill people receiving incapacity benefits—more than the total number of unemployed people receiving unemployment benefits. So in Britain mental illness has now taken over from unemployment as our greatest social problem.