Sun Life data traces the surge to a wider share of plan members claiming, not heavier use
Mental health practitioner claims across Canadian group benefits plans have climbed nearly 3.5 times since 2019, and the share of plan members making such a claim has risen approximately 2.5 times.
Sun Life’s Designed for Health report, based on claims filed between 2019 and 2025, attributes growth across paramedical categories almost entirely to a rise in the share of members claiming rather than to higher claim frequency per member.
Employees under 30 recorded the fastest growth, with mental health practitioner claims more than tripling.
Erin Crump, vice-president, market development, Sun Life Health, said in the release that Canadians are seeking more support for mental health and chronic conditions.
She linked health outcomes to financial security, saying people who can access mental health support, manage chronic conditions and build savings are in a stronger position.
Massage therapy, physiotherapy and chiropractic remain the most used paramedical benefits, per Designed for Health, with mental health practitioner claims now accounting for almost as many claims per covered plan member as chiropractor claims.
Women were approximately twice as likely as men to have made a mental health practitioner claim.
Drug claims grew across virtually all major categories except narcotic analgesics. High blood pressure and diabetes drugs remain the highest-volume claims, followed by high cholesterol and depression.
By 2025, the proportion of members taking a chronic weight management drug had grown to more than four times its 2019 level, and the proportion taking ADHD drugs to almost three times.
Sun Life cites federal diabetes prevalence data and a CMAJ study on prescription opioid use among its supporting references.
Average plan member balances are up more than 30 percent against the 2022 baseline across nearly every industry, according to Sun Life’s 2026 Designed for Savings Industry Focus, which references Group Retirement Services data as of December 31, 2025.
The report records the largest gains in utilities at 42 percent, consumer staples at 36 percent and affiliations at 34 percent.
Balances range from around $59,000 in Indigenous governments to roughly $205,000 in oil, gas and consumable fuels, a spread the report attributes to compensation levels and plan design.
The dataset covers 1.7 million members across 17 employer segments and nearly 7,000 plans.
Cross-industry average combined member and sponsor contributions run $12,700 a year, and the cross-industry median balance at retirement is $343,000.
Average retirement age in the plans rose from 62.8 years in 2022 to 63.7 years in 2025, against a national average of 65.1 years and a private-sector average of 66 years, per Statistics Canada Table 14-10-0060-01 as cited in the report.
Joe De Dominicis, vice-president, market development, group retirement services, Sun Life, said in the release that plan design, guidance and continued engagement matter more than access alone in turning an intention to save into savings.
