Sun Life and the City of Quebec are directing a new round of mental health funding to three community organizations supporting vulnerable young people in the Capitale-Nationale region.
Marking the 75th Mental Health Week, Quebec City Mayor Bruno Marchand and Marie‑Chantal Côté, senior vice president of Sun Life Health, announced that the third Mental Health Investment Fund will support more than 2,300 youth over the next three years.
The fund, first unveiled at the Quebec City Mayor’s Ball in December 2025, totalled $100,000, with Sun Life contributing $75,000 and Quebec City $25,000, and is managed by the Youth in Mind Foundation (Fondation Jeunes en Tête).
The fund is focused on treatment and prevention, aiming both to improve access to care for vulnerable teens and to strengthen awareness and support for young people in difficult situations.
“We have a collective responsibility not only to look after our young people, but also to offer them hope for the future,” said Marchand. “Every day, the organizations that support them do essential work with remarkable humanity and dedication. Thanks to this fund, they will have additional resources to take action and, above all, better equip young people to face their challenges.”
Three organizations will receive equal allocations of $33,000 over the next three years.
Accès Psy will use its $33,000 allocation to promote access to mental health services for low‑income youth, with the goal of preventing problems from becoming severe or chronic. The funding is expected to support eight to 12 young people per year, each receiving between 14 and 16 psychotherapy sessions.
Entraide Jeunesse Québec will receive $33,000 to expand its support and prevention activities for young people through awareness‑raising tools. Its programs address stress and anxiety management, violence in romantic relationships, conflict resolution and related topics, and are expected to reach around 750 youth per year.
Fondation Ancrage Jeunesse will receive $33,000 for its “Envol vers l’autonomie” project, which targets young people aged 16 to 25 who are or have been in the youth protection system. The project focuses on challenges in the transition to adulthood, including housing instability, financial insecurity, mental health issues and social isolation, with the aim of reducing the risk of homelessness and marginalization. The funding will allow about 15 young people per year to receive up to 20 counseling sessions.
“With the support of these three youth advocacy partners, we are expanding our reach to support young people and have an impact where needs are most urgent,” said Mélanie Boucher, president and CEO of the Youth in Mind Foundation. “Given the current situation, it's important to join forces and combine our expertise to give adolescents the help and tools they need to build good mental health.”
The initiative aligns with a broader trend which shows that youth mental health indicators in Canada have deteriorated in recent years, while demand for mental health services and related claims has risen.
National data compiled in the Canadian Mental Health Association's State of Mental Health in Canada 2024 materials showed that almost one in four hospitalizations for children and youth aged five to 24 is now related to mental health, with youth people, particularly girls and LGBTQIA+ youth, more likely to report poor mental health and unmet needs for care.
A separate federal analysis of Canadian Health Survey data found that nearly one in five children and youth who needed mental health care in the previous year reported partially met or unmet needs, highlighting persistent access gaps.
Insurers are seeing these pressures reflected in their own data. Sun Life has reported that mental health‑related drug claims among young Canadian plan members have risen sharply in recent years, prompting the company to expand coverage for mental health practitioners and invest in digital tools and community programs. The insurer has also committed millions of dollars in donations to support mental health initiatives for at‑risk and marginalized youth across the country.
Other Canadian carriers are similarly ramping up mental health offerings, combining employee assistance programs and virtual counseling with enhanced paramedical coverage and self‑guided digital tools. GreenShield, for example, has built an integrated “payvider” model that includes virtual therapy and digital cognitive behavioral therapy, while Manulife provides access to TELUS Health virtual care and dedicated mental health counseling services through its group benefits platform.
Within that wider context, Sun Life’s partnership with Quebec City and Youth in Mind shows how insurers are extending their mental health strategies beyond plan design into targeted community investments, particularly for youth who may not yet have access to comprehensive employer‑sponsored coverage.
As more insurers invest in both enhanced benefits and local initiatives, employers may be able to leverage partnerships like the Youth in Mind fund to complement their own mental health strategies, particularly for dependents and young adults who fall outside traditional workplace support structures.
