President’s Message: Investing in Mental Health is Investing in Utah’s Future

There are few investments in a state’s future more consequential than the investment we make in the health of our people. The reasons are practical, and they reach into nearly every dimension of life. 

Better mental health is connected to better physical health, more engaged students and a workforce more capable of meeting its potential. Roughly 75 percent of mental health conditions emerge by the mid-20s, which means the years when Utah’s young people are forming their identities and preparing for their careers are also the years when timely support can change the course of a life.

The opportunity in front of us is significant. Researchers, providers and communities have identified what works: earlier access to care, better-trained professionals and stronger support inside the schools, workplaces and community settings where people live their daily lives. These strategies are proven, scalable and ready to be deployed wherever leaders decide to make the investment.

Through Utah Rising, the Workforce and Education focus area carries a signature project that should make every Utahn proud: investment in training mental health professionals to improve student-to-counselor ratios across our schools. The future of Utah’s economy depends on the well-being of Utah’s people, and the well-being of our people begins with the support we provide our young.

When students have access to a counselor who can recognize signs of struggle early and connect them with support, young adults are better prepared to enter the workforce and contribute. When families have access to behavioral health professionals close to home, parents stay employed, communities stabilize and the foundation of every other Utah Rising goal grows stronger. Mental health is not adjacent to our workforce strategy. They go hand in hand.

Alongside this signature investment, the Utah Chamber is advancing a broader mental and behavioral health agenda at the Capitol. We are advocating for stronger crisis response teams, better patient transport between care settings, expanded suicide prevention efforts and a deeper health care workforce pipeline so Utah can train and retain the professionals our growing population requires. 

As Mental Health Awareness Month draws to a close, I would invite every business leader in Utah to take three steps. Look honestly at the mental health support your organization provides and ask whether it is reaching the employees who need it most. Equip your managers with the training and the permission to act when they see someone struggling. And model, from the top, the kind of openness about wellbeing that makes it safe for everyone else to do the same.

People often ask me what accounts for our state’s consistent performance, our ability to attract and retain talent and our resilience through challenges that have staggered other places. The answer is not a single policy or program. It is something harder to name but unmistakable when you encounter it. Utah operates like a larger family. We take care of one another. We invest in the people who come after us.