March 31, 2025 – Children’s Mental Health Ontario (CMHO) welcomes the independent audit from the Office of the Auditor General of Ontario (Auditor General) on community-based child and youth mental health programs. We are pleased to see that the Ministry of Health has accepted all 22 recommendations. We are eager to partner with government and our community-based mental health and other sector partners to support the immediate implementation of all recommendations, which also aligns with the policy and increased investment recommendations of CMHO’s 2025 Ontario pre-budget submission.

The Auditor General’s report puts a spotlight on the urgent risks facing children and youth in Ontario that are seeking mental health care, but are not always receiving equitable and timely care.

For too many years, we have seen rising mental health needs and increasing acuity of mental health issues in children and youth. At the same time, child and youth mental health community agencies have faced increasing health human resources challenges that contribute to longer wait times and service gaps.

The Auditor General report finds that average wait times are 105 days for intensive services, up from 92 days, as reported by CMHO in 2020. In some regions of the province, the type of mental health care they need is not available at all. For example, the report notes significant service gaps, including over a third of the province’s regional service areas lacking live-in mental health treatment for young Ontarians. The report also highlights many of the gaps and inequities in the community child and youth mental health system for families seeking care, including for children transitioning to adulthood and those with concurrent disorders and addictions, as well as for marginalized and equity-deserving communities. As well, the report makes it clear that the sector needs a targeted health human resources workforce strategy, including closing the wage gap between community mental health and other sectors like hospitals and the education system, echoing the policy recommendations of CMHO’s 2023 HR Report.

Recent investments from the Government of Ontario directed to community child and youth mental health care have been important to start to address some of the issues repeatedly outlined by CMHO and found in the Auditor General’s report, but more is needed. We need to work together to ensure that every infant, child, youth and family has timely and equitable access to the mental health care they need, and that every dollar invested is used in a way that maximizes its impact.

The good news is there is positive momentum to build on. New funding announced as part of a $44.6 million investment in January 2024 has been targeted to develop standardized and co-ordinated live-in treatment services for children and youth through the development of the Ontario Intensive Treatment Pathway (OITP). Now is the time to continue to build on these investments, including in the 2025 Ontario Budget, because the needs are urgent and Ontario’s kids and families can’t wait.