MHA Releases 2025 “State of Mental Health in America” Report

Mental Health America (MHA) has released it’s annual “The State of Mental Health in America” 2025 report. The report highlights the latest national data and provides state-level rankings on mental health and well-being in the United States; and provides critical insights to drive policy, improve care, and support people living with mental health conditions across the country. Overall, the report found that mental health care and access to supports need improvement, with millions of adults and youth in the U.S. who need care that cannot receive it.

Optimistically, Ohio ranked #12 in the nation for overall mental health; a ranking that was arrived at by tallying the overall scores across 4 primary categories: 1) Prevalence of Adult Mental Health Concerns; 2) Prevalence of Youth Mental Health Concerns; 3) Overall Prevalence of Mental Health Concerns; and 4) Access to Care. Ohio’s high overall score was driven primarily by our high score in the category of “Access to Care”, where Ohio ranked #12. In terms of prevalence of Mental Health concerns among Adults and Youth, however, Ohio ranked #22 in the nation.

Based on the findings, the prevalence of mental health concerns among adults has not changed from 2021, with 23.4% of adults in the U.S. experiencing any mental illness in 2024 (equating to over 60 million people); and 1-in-4 adults with a mental illness wanted or sought treatment but was unable to receive it. Among youth, the findings were much worse – with over half of youth who experienced a major depressive episode in the past year not receiving treatment.

The report also highlighted some positive trends. For example, there were improvements in rates of youth with major depression and thoughts of suicide, dropping from 12.3% in 2023 to 10.1% in 2024. Youth aged 12 to 17 who experienced a major depressive episode in the past year also decreased, from 18.1% in 2023 to 15.4% in 2024. Not surprisingly, states that had increased funding for mental health through either school-based mental health services or expansion of services through the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline had better outcomes. Both of these efforts have been prioritized by Ohio Governor Mike DeWine for significant investment over the past several years.

The top 5 states for mental health included:

1. New York
2. Hawaii
3. New Jersey
4. Vermont
5. Iowa

And the bottom 5 states included:

51. Nevada
50. Arizona
49. Alabama
48. Idaho
47. Wyoming

To learn more, visit MHA’s State of Mental Health in America website or download the full report here.