Mental Health Treatment Reported by US Workers before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic: United States (2019–2020)

Ja K. Gu, Luenda E. Charles (), Penelope Allison, John M. Violanti and Michael E. Andrew
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Ja K. Gu: Bioanalytics Branch, Health Effects Laboratory Division, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Morgantown, WV 26505, USA
Luenda E. Charles: Bioanalytics Branch, Health Effects Laboratory Division, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Morgantown, WV 26505, USA
Penelope Allison: Bioanalytics Branch, Health Effects Laboratory Division, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Morgantown, WV 26505, USA
John M. Violanti: Department of Epidemiology and Environmental Health, School of Public Health and Health Professions, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, Buffalo, NY 14214, USA
Michael E. Andrew: Bioanalytics Branch, Health Effects Laboratory Division, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Morgantown, WV 26505, USA

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 20, issue 1, 1-8

Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic introduced a significant and unprecedented exacerbation of community mental health challenges. We compared the prevalence of mental health treatment (MHT) before and during the COVID-19 pandemic among US workers. Self-reported MHT data (N = 30,680) were obtained from the Sample Adult data of the National Health Interview Survey (2019 and 2020). MHT was defined as having taken prescription medications for mental health issues or receiving counseling from a mental health professional in the past 12 months. We calculated age-adjusted prevalence estimates and employed t -tests to compare MHT in 2019 and 2020 using SAS-callable SUDAAN 11.0. The prevalence of MHT significantly increased from 16.3% in 2019 to 17.6% in 2020 (difference = 1.3, p = 0.030). The prevalence of taking prescription medications for mental health issues significantly increased in 2020 compared to 2019 (12.5% to 13.6%, difference = 1.1, p = 0.037). The prevalence of receiving counseling significantly increased but only among those who worked 30–49 h/week, difference = 1.2, p = 0.022. US workers, especially those with typical work hours, appeared to experience higher mental distress during the first year of the pandemic compared to the year prior to the pandemic period. These findings highlight the need for targeted interventions to address mental health issues in these workers.

Keywords: prevalence; mental health treatment; workers; NHIS; COVID-19 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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