Mental ill health is expected to rise following the end of the government’s furlough scheme tomorrow, according to predictions from AIG Life.
The insurer says the end of the job retention scheme could see more people being made redundant, which will increase financial pressures on individuals and families.
Those who return to work after 18 months at home could also face some mental health difficulties, according to AIG Life. The insurer point out that many people’s mental health has been impacted by the rising cost of living as well as the significant backlog of NHS patients which has meant that 1.6 million people are currently on a waiting list for mental health care.
Young people hit by unemployment and furlough during the pandemic have come forward to ask for more help with managing their mental health according to AIG Life.
AIG Life offers access to mental health experts through its health and wellbeing service Smart Health, which has continued to see a demand for appointments, particularly among younger employees. The service has seen 24 per cent more people receiving private help in the first six months of 2021 than in the whole of 2020.
AIG Life chief financial officer Donald MacLean says: “Living through the pandemic has been tough on everyone’s mental health. All the indications are that employees who were furloughed by their employer were to some degree protected for a time against the financial impact. This situation changes for some people at the end of this month, so we need to be ready to help when people are brave enough to say they’re struggling with mental illness and they can’t work as a result.
“More people could need help from a psychologist or mental health specialist to get through the anxiety of losing a job and struggling financially when furlough ends.” He added help was also available to those struggling with to cope with a return to the office, or feeling isolated through new hybrid work from home arrangements.
“While people’s mental health seems to have improved since lockdown was lifted, we expect as a protection insurer to see a rise in demand for private mental healthcare support. I would urge any customer who is struggling financially and is worried that they can’t afford their insurance to seek help, get in touch and talk to us about it. We can put them in touch with mental health specialists and there is still some flexibility, for example, to defer paying their insurance premiums until March 2022.”
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