In Canada’s universal health system, mental health care is not so universal: report [Video]

About 2.5 million people — nearly the populations of Manitoba and Saskatchewan combined — aren’t getting adequate care for their mental health, according to a new report.

The Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA), which released the report on Tuesday, called it a map of the landscape of mental health, addictions and substance use in the country.

“We are not doing well,” said Sarah Kennell, the group’s national director of public policy, in an interview. “For many Canadians, mental health is in fact grim.”

The report looked at 24 measures, from how much is being spent on care, to suicide rates and levels of discrimination against people with mental health concerns, with breakdowns by province and territory, where available.

On average, provinces and territories spend about 6.3 per cent of their overall health-care budgets on mental health, the report says, roughly half the 12 per cent that CMHA recommends. That’s a fraction compared to a country …