Economist Ingvar Nilsson warns of the huge societal economic costs of mental health issues. At the Suicidprevention 2025 conference in Karlstad, he emphasized that preventive measures pay off in the long term. Moderate mental health problems can cost millions of kronor per patient.
At the Suicidprevention 2025 conference held at Karlstad CCC on October 22-23, economist Ingvar Nilsson lectured on Wednesday about the socioeconomic consequences of mental health issues. He argues that measures to prevent mental health problems are often seen as expensive, but they actually pay off in the long term.
"A moderate mental health issue over a few years can cost two or three million kronor for a patient – often up to ten million kronor," says Nilsson. A preventive intervention, however, can cost a few hundred thousand kronor.
Nilsson highlights the major issue among youth: "Of all young people who graduate from high school each year, around 10,000 end up in exclusion. It costs society 210 billion kronor – for each cohort. Preventive work requires a lot at the beginning, in terms of resources and collaboration, but is profitable in the long term."
The conference focuses on suicide prevention and national collaboration for mental health, underscoring mental illness as a major societal problem in Karlstad and nationally.