Ahead of its 2025 Health Claims and Insights report being published, Vitality has revealed its mental health claims rates have more than doubled – increasing by an incredible 119% between 2019-2024.
A key driver of this increase in claims rates is from Talking Therapies, which includes treatments such as cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and counselling and is used for a range of mental health conditions. In fact, between 2019 and 2024, Talking Therapy claims rates increased a dramatic 167%.
Vitality’s claims data also points to increases in rates of mental health claims for anxiety disorder and depression, which increased by 68% and 53% respectively between 2019 and 2024.
It may come as little surprise that in 2024 it was younger people who utilised Talking Therapy benefits the most, with claims rates being highest for people aged 30 to 39, followed by those under 30.
This trend reflects a broader cultural shift with NHS England reporting that one in five young people aged 8–25 had a probable mental disorder in 2023, with rates highest among 17–19-year-olds.
Vitality also reports a correlation between the increase in Talking Therapies claims rates and a decrease in more serious in-patient / day-patient claims rates, which declined 41%, and out-patient mental health claims rates which declined 17%.
In response to the insights, Arun Thiyagarajan, CEO of VitalityHealth, said “At Vitality, we’ve seen a significant rise in mental health claims, which is why we’ve invested in a comprehensive support pathway that includes access to Talking Therapies, app-based tools like Headspace and Wysa, all of which work to help remove barriers to care.
Our insights, which reflect wider societal trends, highlight that mental health support is no longer a nice to have – it’s a central part of how people engage with their health insurance. What’s particularly striking is how younger people are leading this shift, they’re showing us what the future of healthcare looks like: proactive, personalised, and deeply attuned to mental wellbeing.”
