Patients with Depression and Anxiety Disorders Increased by 30% Over 5 Years... Women Twice as Many as Men

Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service 2017~2021
Analysis Results of Depression and Anxiety Disorder Treatment Statistics

Depression During the Monsoon Season

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Young-won] The number of patients suffering from depression and anxiety disorders increased by up to about 35% compared to five years ago. By gender, women were up to twice as many as men.

On the 24th, the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service analyzed treatment statistics for depression and anxiety disorders from 2017 to 2021. Compared to 2017, the number of depression patients increased by 35.1% and anxiety disorder patients by 32.3% in 2021. During the same period, the age group with the highest increase rate for both depression and anxiety disorders was people in their 20s, with 127.1% and 86.8%, respectively.

Last year, the number of depression patients was 933,481, an increase of 242,317 from 691,164 in 2017. The total annual medical expenses also increased by 73.5% to 527.1 billion KRW in 2021, and the medical expense per person rose from 439,501 KRW to 564,712 KRW.

By age, patients in their 20s accounted for the largest share at 19.0% (177,166 people). They were followed by those in their 60s and 30s, while those under 10 years old were the fewest at 1,940. In 2017, patients in their 60s accounted for the largest proportion at 18.7% (129,330 people), but from 2020, those in their 20s overtook them.

By gender, female depression patients numbered 630,334, which is 2.1 times that of males (303,147). However, among those under 10 years old, males were 1.7 times more than females.

The number of anxiety disorder patients increased by 32.3% from 653,694 in 2017 to 865,108 in 2021. The total annual medical expenses increased by 85.5% from 153.1 billion KRW in 2017 to last year, and the medical expense per person rose by 38.7% during the same period to 324,689 KRW.

Anxiety disorders have various detailed classifications, and over the past five years, the largest number of patients were those with 'unspecified anxiety disorder.' 'Mixed anxiety and depressive disorder,' 'panic disorder,' 'generalized anxiety disorder,' and 'other specified anxiety disorders' remained within the top five.

By age, in 2017, patients in their 50s accounted for the largest share at 20.7% (135,525 people), but in 2021, patients in their 60s accounted for the largest proportion at 18.5% (159,845 people).

By gender, last year, female anxiety disorder patients numbered 533,436, which is 1.6 times that of males at 331,672.

According to the National Center for Mental Health's '2021 Mental Health Survey,' the lifetime prevalence rate of depressive disorders is 7.7%, and anxiety disorders 9.3%, while the one-year prevalence rates are 1.7% for depressive disorders and 3.1% for anxiety disorders.

Ahn Mira, head of the Benefit Information Analysis Office at the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service, said, "The number of patients with depression and anxiety disorders has recently increased significantly," adding, "I hope people take time to care for their mental health amid busy daily lives and check if anyone around them or their family is struggling."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.