In 2023, the Sorenson Impact Institute and the Health Economics Core of the Utah Clinical & Translational Science Institute began a project to document the social and economic impact of HMHI’s programs and activities. This report focuses on six areas: geographic access to HMHI services, public perceptions of substance use disorder, emergency department and inpatient utilization, risk of emergency department use after HMHI clinic visits, patient engagement, and the economic impact of HMHI’s federally funded research.
Main takeaway
HMHI provides high-impact mental health services to Utah patients, reduces emergency department utilization and associated costs, and contributes meaningfully to the local economy by bringing federal research dollars to Utah. The report also identifies opportunities to expand services, improve public perceptions of people with substance use disorders, and further reduce preventable emergency department use.
Key Findings
HMHI offers services that would otherwise be difficult for Utah patients to access, including treatment-resistant mood disorder services and detoxification services. The report identifies expansion of services as a potentially important opportunity.
Most Utah residents express sympathy toward people with substance use disorders, but some groups are less likely to do so. The report recommends that stigma-reduction efforts focus on groups with lower reported sympathy, including rural residents, uninsured individuals, and veterans.
Across the clinics examined, HMHI visits were followed by reductions in emergency department and inpatient care utilization, with meaningful cost savings for patients and insurers.
The report finds substantial variation across HMHI programs in predicted risk for an emergency department visit within 30 days after an HMHI program visit, with higher risk concentrated in more acute or crisis-oriented settings.
Higher patient engagement is associated with reduced risk of near-future emergency department utilization and longer time to the next emergency department visit.
Between 2018 and 2023, HMHI’s federally funded research activities generated more than $76 million in economic output and added more than 350 jobs to the local economy.
Download the Report
Download the full report PDF: An Analysis of Social and Economic Impact of the Huntsman Mental Health Institute
Suggested citation:
Bailey EV, Goldstein EV, Kitcharoenkarnkul P, Hansen EJ, Wilson FA. An Analysis of Social and Economic Impact of the Huntsman Mental Health Institute. Matheson Center for Health Care Studies, University of Utah, Salt Lake City; 2026.