RESEARCH & RESOURCES
A clear, citable snapshot of recent U.S. mental health and treatment data. Last updated October 16, 2026.
2026 REFERENCE PAGE
Mental health statistics can be useful when they are specific about who was counted, what was measured, and when the data was collected. This page brings together the latest available national figures from the federal National Survey on Drug Use and Health.
The data below describes U.S. adults age 18 and older in 2025. It is a national reference, not a measure of individual need, diagnosis, or the quality of care in any one community.
KEY STATISTICS
20.6%
That represents 54.6 million adults age 18 and older in 2025. SAMHSA uses “any mental illness” for a mental, behavioral, or emotional disorder that meets its survey criteria, excluding developmental disorders and substance use disorders.
Source: SAMHSA, 2025 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 20256.9%
That represents 18.2 million adults age 18 and older in 2025.
Source: SAMHSA, 2025 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 202550.9%
27.8 million adults with any mental illness reported receiving treatment in the past year in 2025. This measure includes counseling or treatment in inpatient or outpatient settings, prescription medication, telehealth treatment, and treatment in correctional settings.
Source: SAMHSA, 2025 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 202539.5%
21.6 million adults with any mental illness reported using prescription medication to help with their mental health in 2025.
Source: SAMHSA, 2025 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 202534.2%
18.7 million adults with any mental illness reported outpatient mental health treatment in 2025.
Source: SAMHSA, 2025 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 202532.8%
17.9 million adults with any mental illness reported telehealth treatment in 2025.
Source: SAMHSA, 2025 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 2025HOW TO READ THESE FIGURES
“Mental health treatment” in this survey can include outpatient or inpatient care, prescription medication, telehealth treatment, or treatment received in a correctional setting. Those forms of care can overlap, so the individual treatment figures should not be added together.
These estimates come from self-reported survey responses from the civilian, noninstitutionalized U.S. population. They offer a useful national picture, while leaving room for the different realities clients bring into a therapy office.
METHODOLOGY & SOURCES
SAMHSA, 2025 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: Key Substance Use and Mental Health Indicators in the United States. The report was published in 2026 and presents 2025 survey estimates.
The National Survey on Drug Use and Health is conducted annually by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The 2025 report uses a nationally representative survey of the U.S. civilian, noninstitutionalized population age 12 and older. This page uses its adult findings only.
October 16, 2026. Interconnections Therapy will review this page regularly as new federal data becomes available, while keeping these statistic links stable for readers who cite them.
Interconnections Therapy. “Mental Health & Therapy Access Statistics: 2026 Reference.” Updated October 16, 2026. https://interconnectionstherapy.org/mental-health-statistics
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