Policy & Research

Canadians need more from their mental health system

In the face of a mental health crisis and government inaction, Canadians are saying it’s time we all had free, publicly funded mental health care. The Canadian Mental Health Association…

Real Talk: Mental health stories from across Canada

What are the real-life experiences of people in the mental health system? We went across the country asking them. Here’s what they told us.

Budget 2023 out of touch with mental health crisis

The Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) is profoundly concerned that Budget 2023 did not include the promised Canada Mental Health Transfer.   Failing to establish the Transfer is an abdication of…

A message to our government leaders: The impact of COVID-19 on mental health is real. Let’s listen to the evidence.

The overwhelming evidence from Canada shows that the pandemic took a significant and undeniable toll, with ongoing impacts on people’s mental health. In light of this, we would like to…

Open letter to Prime Minister Trudeau: There’s a mental health crisis for children and youth and they need your help

Dear Prime Minister Trudeau,  We hope that you were able to take Family Day last Monday to spend time with your family.   To mark Family Day, we asked Canadians to…

Statement on upcoming changes to Canada’s Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) law

The Canadian Mental Health Association makes this statement in anticipation of the legislative change in March 2023 that will allow people to qualify for Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) when…

Federal plan for universal mental health & substance use health

We all have the right to mental health care that is publicly funded and free. Yet millions of Canadians are struggling and only some will get the care they need….

CMHA calls on the federal government to make mental health part of Canada’s universal health care system in 2023 budget 

When it comes to mental health in Canada, it would simply be untrue to call our health system universal. Mental health and substance use problems are rampant in Canada, but…

CMHA testimony before FEWO: young women and girls mental health study

CMHA National testifies before The Standing Committee on the Status of Women in order to bring attention to the challenges faced by women and girls when it comes to accessing…

Open letter to Minister Bennett

Members of the Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health (CAMIMH), Organizations for Health Action (HEAL), the Extended Healthcare Professionals Coalition (EHPC) and other organizations in intersecting sectors (see…

Joint Statement from Members of the Child and Youth Mental Health Sector and its Stakeholders

Youth and the dedicated workers supporting them are struggling – and the pandemic has only exacerbated this. A Statistics Canada report shows youth are the least likely among all age…

Open letter to the federal government: National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

The Burnout Crisis: A Call to Invest in ECE and Child and Youth Workers  

Early Childhood Educators (ECEs) and Child and Youth Workers are vital to the success of the economy. However, their work is grossly undervalued as evidenced by stagnant wages and chronic…

A holding pattern for mental health

2022-2023 Federal Budget commitments & analysis  INTRODUCTION  On April 7, 2022, the Trudeau government delivered Budget 2022: A Plan to Grow Our Economy and Make Life More Affordable. The federal…

CMHA appears before House of Commons Standing Committee on Health

On March 23, 2022, CMHA’s National CEO, Margaret Eaton appeared before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Health to discuss the emergency situation facing Canadians in light of the…

Running on Empty: how community mental health organizations have fared on the frontlines of the pandemic

A new report by the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) reveals how not-for-profit mental health workers and organizations have been impacted by and responded to the pandemic. Entitled Running on…

A summary of key findings – Round 4: Assessing the Impacts of COVID-19 on Mental Health

Far from feeling the pandemic is over, most people in Canada are stressed about what’s next, with 64% worried about new variants and 57% worried about COVID-19 circulating in the…

CMHA Budget 2022 pre-budget consultations: appearance before FINA Committee

5mins Check against delivery Thank you Chair. Hello, my name is Margaret Eaton, I am the National CEO of the Canadian Mental Health Association, or CMHA.   CMHA is the…

Brief | Mental Health as a Human Right: CMHA’s Vision

In 2021, the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) launched a nationwide strategic plan that articulates its new vision: a Canada where mental health is a universal human right.   For CMHA, this brief is a starting point for unpacking what ‘mental health as human right’ means in practice. It…

CMHA statement on conversion ‘therapy’

Conversion ‘therapy’ is a harmful practice that puts the mental health of 2SLGBTQ+ people at risk The Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) is the most extensive community mental health organization…

Taking care of mental health on Parliament Hill

The pandemic has put a focus on mental health like never before. Perhaps mental health needs have never been so great. In fact, 41% of Canadians have seen their mental…

CMHA calls for direct investment in community mental health in budget 2022

The pandemic has had a devastating and lasting impact on the mental health of Canadians. Extended isolation, economic insecurity, fear of infection, and the loss of life and a sense…

Federal Election 2021 – All-Party Questionnaire

In August 2021, the Canadian Mental Health Association developed an election questionnaire for major federal political parties on mental health topics. The questionnaire asked parties to provide details regarding how…

Federal Election Infokit

CMHA believes federal investment in a pan-Canadian community mental health plan is the key to our collective recovery. CMHA invites candidates to become a mental health champion in this election campaign. We need…

Round 3 of national survey shows pandemic is taking an emotional toll

The pandemic is taking an emotional toll on people in Canada, as 77% of adults report feeling so-called negative emotions as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The five most…

Women’s access to supervised consumption services: a study

As many Canadians continue to lose their lives to opioid poisonings, understanding how to prevent these tragic and preventable deaths is essential. The opioid poisoning crisis has been called a…

CMHA applauds Budget 2021 investments in Mental Health

ANNOUNCEMENT The Canadian Mental Health Association Applauds Budget 2021 Investments in Mental Health Toronto, April 20, 2021: Today, Margaret Eaton, National CEO of the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA), the…

Investing in community-based mental health services for long-term pandemic recovery

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused extreme national anxiety with mental health effects like nothing we have seen before. Research suggests that Canadians will still be struggling with their mental health long after a vaccine is available. The Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) has made the…

A new “Social Contract” for a Mentally Healthy Canada

Canada has been suffering through a mental health crisis that has worsened since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Declared a public health emergency in many parts of Canada last…

Statement on Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID)

Canadian Mental Health Association on Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) Toronto, ON February 23, 2021: The Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) is deeply disappointed that the government supports allowing those…

New national survey finds Canadians’ mental health eroding

The second wave of the pandemic has intensified feelings of stress and anxiety, causing alarming levels of despair, suicidal thoughts and hopelessness in the Canadian population. This, according to the…

Presentation to the Standing Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs regarding Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID)

Comments provided by the Canadian Mental Health Association to the Standing Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs regarding Medical Assistance in Dying and Bill C-7, on November 23rd, 2020:…

Online supports for COVID-19 stress are there—but Canadians aren’t accessing them

Many Canadians are not making use of virtual resources that could help them cope with the mental health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the latest analysis of a…

Muslim Women’s Mental Health: a study

The community-based research project, Muslim Women’s Mental Health, asked Muslim women in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) to describe their first-hand experiences of mental health and mental health…

Statement on Universal Basic Income

When the COVID-19 pandemic caused sudden and unprecedented job loss, Canada moved swiftly. The COVID-19 Economic Recovery Plan – of which the CERB is a part – provided temporary income…

Prebudget submission 2021

Investing in focused areas of support to ensure long-term mental health recovery for Canadians The COVID-19 pandemic has caused extreme national anxiety with mental health effects like nothing we have…

Statement on police and wellness checks

Mental illness is not a crime The Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) is deeply concerned by the recent deaths of individuals experiencing a mental health crisis across Canada stemming from…

COVID-19 and Mental Health: Heading Off an Echo Pandemic

INTRODUCTION: THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON MENTAL HEALTHIn Canada, COVID-19, or coronavirus disease, has caused thousands of deaths and continuesto endanger lives. Since the World Health Organization declared the outbreak…

COVID-19 effects on the mental health of vulnerable populations: Wave 1

The pandemic has caused intense stress and disruption for all people in Canada, and is causing pronounced mental health concerns, including suicidal thoughts and feelings, in various subgroups of the…

Going it Alone: The mental health and well-being of Canada’s entrepreneurs

It is often said that small business is the backbone of the Canadian economy and that when entrepreneurs succeed, so does Canada. Considering the importance of small and medium-sized businesses to the…

Cohesive, Collaborative, Collective: Advancing Mental Health Promotion in Canada

To mark its 68th annual Mental Health Week, the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) calls for a national mental health promotion strategy to help shore up Canadians’ mental health in the…

Mental Health in the Balance: Ending the Health Care Disparity in Canada

The Canadian Mental Health Association calls for new legislation to bring mental health into balance with physical health.  Over half of Canadians (53%) consider anxiety and depression to be ‘epidemic’ in Canada, with…

CMHA responds to Government of Canada announcement on Advisory Council on the Implementation of National Pharmacare

On June 20, 2018, the Honourable Ginette Petitpas Taylor, Minister of Health, and the Honourable Bill Morneau, Minister of Finance, announced that the Government has appointed six Canadians as members of the Advisory Council…

Care not Corrections: Relieving the Opioid Crisis in Canada

In response to escalating rates of opioid-related harms in Canada and the connections with mental illness and addictions, the Canadian Mental Health Association developed an in-depth evidence-based policy paper directed…

CMHA Position on Medical Assistance in Dying

With the passing of Bill C-14, the Canadian Mental Health Association raises concern regarding the criteria eligibility of mental illnesses for medical assistance in dying (MAiD). Specifically, CMHA holds the…

A Framework for Support

A Framework for Support is CMHA’s central policy regarding people with mental illness. This third edition retained the integrity of the model and is now positioned within the current context…