Mental Health Care Cannot Be Allowed to Fall Off a Funding Cliff

Jul 22, 2026

Mental health care is health care. Yet for too many people, finding timely and affordable support remains difficult, especially before a situation reaches the point of crisis.

Across Canada, community-based mental health and addiction services help people access care closer to home. These services can offer earlier support, help people remain connected to their families and workplaces, and reduce pressure on hospitals and other crisis-response systems.

But the future of that care is uncertain.

In 2017, the federal government committed $5 billion over 10 years specifically for mental health and addiction care. That funding is scheduled to end on March 31, 2027. Without renewed investment, services Canadians rely on could face reductions or closure.

For communities like Calgary, this national decision matters.

Support Should Be Available Before a Crisis

When someone begins experiencing a mental health challenge, a hospital emergency department should not be their only option.

Community mental health services can provide people with support earlier, in settings that are often more accessible and less intimidating. Depending on the person and their circumstances, that could mean mental health education, peer support, navigation, recovery-focused programming or connection to other community resources.

These services do not replace clinical or emergency care. They are an important part of a broader system that gives people more ways to find help.

When accessible community services are unavailable, people may have to wait longer, travel farther or go without support altogether. Challenges that could have been addressed earlier may escalate, placing additional pressure on emergency departments, hospitals, police, shelters and other crisis services.

The national advocacy materials identify several possible consequences if federal funding is not renewed: longer wait lists, reductions or closures in community care, and greater pressure on costly emergency, hospital, police and shelter services.

Investing in community care is not only about responding to crisis. It is about creating more opportunities to prevent one.

Cost Continues to Be a Barrier

Even when people recognize that they need support, cost can determine whether they are able to receive it.

One in three Canadians with a diagnosed mental health condition reported that they did not receive mental health care because of cost. Economic uncertainty and job loss can make that barrier even greater, particularly for people who lose access to workplace health benefits or do not have the income to pay privately for care.

This leaves many people in a difficult position. They may know they need help but feel they cannot afford it. Others may delay seeking support until their circumstances become more serious.

Accessible, publicly supported and community-based services help close that gap. They provide another entry point for people who may otherwise be left navigating the system alone.

Mental health care should not depend entirely on someone’s income, employment status or access to private insurance.

Mental Health Is Also an Economic Issue

The impact of unmet mental health needs extends beyond the health care system.

Mental health challenges can affect whether people are able to work, return after an illness or remain connected to their workplace during a difficult period. Approximately 500,000 Canadians miss work each week because of mental health and addiction-related issues, while mental illness is estimated to cost Canada $180 billion annually.

Behind these numbers are individuals, families, coworkers and communities.

When people can access support earlier, they may be better able to manage difficult transitions, maintain relationships and remain engaged in their work and community. While mental health investment should never be measured only through economic productivity, the broader costs of leaving people without care cannot be ignored.

A healthy economy depends, in part, on healthy and supported communities.

What This Means for Calgary

Calgary is a growing and changing city. People are navigating affordability pressures, employment uncertainty, social isolation and increasingly complex mental health needs.

No single organization or level of government can address those challenges alone.

A strong mental health system requires cooperation between governments, health care providers, community organizations and people with lived and living experience. It also requires stable, long-term funding.

Short-term or uncertain funding makes it difficult for organizations to plan, maintain services and respond to changing community needs. Long-term investment provides greater stability and allows the mental health system to focus on building access rather than continually preparing for potential reductions.

Although the federal funding commitment is national, its impact is ultimately experienced locally. It is felt when someone finds support in their community rather than waiting until they are in crisis. It is felt when a family receives guidance, when an individual finds connection through peer support or when someone is helped to navigate an unfamiliar system.

Community mental health care is where national policy becomes personal.

A Call for Renewed Investment

The Canadian Mental Health Association is calling on the federal government to renew a dedicated 10-year, $5 billion investment in mental health and addiction care. The goal is to maintain access to essential services delivered outside of hospitals and help make care more available and consistent across the country.

Renewing this investment would represent an important commitment to a mental health system that is accessible, sustainable and better equipped to support people before they reach crisis.

Allowing the funding to expire would move Canada in the opposite direction.

It could mean fewer services, longer waits and more pressure on systems that are already responding to people at their most vulnerable.

Mental Health Care Cannot Wait

People should not have to reach a crisis before they can receive help.

They should not have to choose between paying for mental health support and meeting other basic needs. They should not be left navigating a complicated system without information, connection or guidance.

Renewed federal investment will not solve every challenge facing Canada’s mental health system. But it is a necessary part of ensuring that community-based care remains available to the people who rely on it.

Mental health care cannot be allowed to fall off a financial cliff.

It is time to protect and strengthen the services that help people stay well, remain connected and find support in their own communities.

Learn more about CMHA’s call for renewed federal mental health and addiction funding, and help raise awareness by sharing this message with your community.