In Northern Germany mental health-related sick leave has reached a historic high. Norddeutscher Rundfunk reported on 11 November 2026 on analyses by major health insurers, covering mainly data for 2025 and the first half of 2026. These include the 2026 Absenteeism Report from the Scientific Institute of the AOK (WIdO) as well as recent analyses by the DAK and supplementary figures from other insurers such as hkk.
According to these reports, the number of days off work due to mental health diagnoses has risen significantly in recent years. The 2026 Absenteeism Report describes a long-term trend towards more days off due to mental illness and places the development in the context of previous years. The 2026 DAK Mental Health Report shows an increase in mental health-related incapacity for work among employees insured with DAK. The hkk and other statutory health insurers also confirm similar patterns in parts of northern Germany.
The health insurers cite several factors. First, many industries report increased work-related and psychosocial pressures, particularly in health, social care and nursing. Second, more diagnoses are being made and recorded, increasing the visibility of mental illness. Third, analyses point out that methodological changes and shifts in other groups of illnesses – such as fewer respiratory infections – may increase the relative significance of mental health diagnoses. The organisations also stress the limits to comparability over longer periods and urge careful interpretation of the time series.
There are regional differences. In several northern German states, days off work due to mental illness are above the national average. These include, among others, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Hamburg. Experts in research and healthcare caution, however, against interpreting the trend solely as a sign of rising morbidity. Alongside an actual increase in pressures, better recognition, changing care pathways and demographic effects also play a part.
The trend has tangible consequences for employers and social insurers. Rising absence rates drive up costs and increase pressure to act on prevention and care. Experts are calling for workplace measures to reduce mental strain, faster access to outpatient services and a more reliable evidence base to distinguish actual changes in health from measurement and recording effects. The findings presented are based on publications available on 11 November 2026 from AOK, WIdO, DAK and other health insurers, and relate mainly to the 2025 calendar year and initial data from 2026.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).