The CEO of Life, Health & Bank Distribution at global insurance giant Zurich has warned as mental health conditions surface at scale there are growing concerns that the capacity for formal support is in danger of falling short.

Alison Martin made her comments as the insurer issued a new global report ‘The Value of Mental Health’ found that the rising recognition of mental health issues is creating new demands for health systems across the globe.

She explained: “Mental health shapes everyday life in ways that are often invisible – until a decline makes its influence impossible to ignore.

“It affects how people feel, how they cope with change and pressure, and whether they stay connected to work, family, and community.

“Across the countries examined in this report – Australia, Chile, Germany, Malaysia, the UAE, and the UK – mental health has moved firmly onto the public agenda. Awareness has risen and more people are coming forward for diagnosis and support.

“This represents an important shift. Earlier recognition can reduce suffering and help individuals and families manage distress before conditions escalate. working-age adults in Australia (30%) and the UK (32%) are projected to be living with a mental health condition by 2030.”

She added: “Drawing on original analysis across a diverse set of economies, The Value of Mental Health examines what mental health conditions mean for people, productivity, and protection systems.

“The countries included illustrate the full spectrum of challenges and opportunities – for public budgets, for people’s ability to live healthy and productive lives, for employers trying to sustain their workforces, for families caring for those affected, and for systems already under strain.

“It also reveals a broader set of realities. As mental health conditions surface at scale, needs that were once managed informally reach formal systems. When capacity does not keep pace, this burden falls back on individuals, through self-management, out-of-pocket spending, and informal care.

“Employers meanwhile face pressure to respond earlier, while services navigate difficult trade-offs to sustain timely, high-quality care for those with more severe or complex needs. This points to a shared challenge across national contexts: how to strengthen the dynamic relationship between supportive protection systems and personal resilience.

“Disruption is part of life, but it is increasingly disconnecting people from daily routines, work, and social life. Support systems – including the mental health care services that insurers can provide – need to continue evolving toward prevention, early engagement, continuity of care, and sustained participation. But personal resilience – the ability to adapt to adversity, recover from setbacks, and maintain financial and social stability – also remains critical. A common pattern emerges across very different systems: significant costs are carried not just by governments, but by individuals, households, and employers, through wellbeing and productivity losses that dwarf public budgets.”

The report warned  the UK faces a major economic and social crisis unless mental health support moves from simply diagnosing conditions to actively helping people to enter, remain in and return to the workforce.

Zurich revealed that by 2030 almost one in three (32%) working-age adults in the UK are projected to be living with a mental health condition, giving the UK the highest rate of diagnosed mental illness among similar high-income economies. This figure is forecast to be twice as high (64%) among teenagers aged 15-19 within the next five years, raising fears around what this could mean for the future of the workforce.

Anxiety disorders (49%) and major depressive disorder (26%) account for the majority of diagnosed conditions, alongside other mental disorders (7%), dysthymia (4%), autism spectrum disorders (3%), ADHD (3%) and bipolar disorder (3%).

The largest economic impacts are not driven by short‑term sick leave, but by a widening employment gap, the report explained. In fact, 98% of productivity losses are caused by reduced workforce participation. The report reveals that the UK has one of the strongest links between poor mental health and long‑term economic inactivity, with employment rates 29 percentage points lower among people with a mental health condition (53%) compared with those without one (82%). In comparison, the gap in similar markets like Germany and Australia is around 40% lower at around 17 or 18 percentage points.

The report shows that the biggest costs of mental illness often sit outside formal protection systems such as community social care. Across six countries analysed – Australia, Chile, Germany, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom – the burden falls heavily on individuals, families and employers, through losses in wellbeing and productivity that can far exceed official mental health care spending.

In the UK, the economic value of wellbeing lost to mental health conditions is around seven times greater than what is spent on formal mental‑health services, according to Zurich’s analysis. The UK already invests 1.4% of GDP (around £42 billion) in mental health protection systems, such as community mental health teams (CMHTs), but it’s clear this is not sufficient.

Mental health-related productivity losses are projected to exceed 5% of the UK’s GDP by 2030. This is equivalent to £170 billion a year and is far higher than the projected loss for other comparable markets; 4% of GDP for Australia, 3% for Germany, 2% for Chile, and 1% for both Malaysia and UAE.

The report also measures effects on people, productivity, and protection systems through to 2030, using metrics like years of healthy life lost, workforce participation gaps and system‑level costs.