Pulse Check 2025: Mothers on Child Mental Health Impacts, Care, and Support
In-depth

Pulse Check 2025, a nationally representative study of 2,700 U.S. mothers, examines children’s mental health needs, access to care, and family experiences navigating support systems. Conducted in partnership with Inseparable, the report centers mothers’ firsthand observations at home, in schools, and in healthcare settings to identify gaps in care and practical paths forward. Findings underscore the scale of unmet need, the central role of cost and insurance barriers, and the importance of school-based and family-centered solutions.

The public report is available below.
Comprehensive data tables, full methodology documentation, and researcher briefings are available to institutional partners, journalists, and credentialed researchers. For access, request a briefing below.
September 17, 2025
Related themes:

Child and Family Mental Health Access and Support

Shared Priorities and Cross-Partisan Alignment Among Mothers

Family Economic Security and Cost Pressures

  • Unmet mental health needs are widespread:
    Nearly 1 in 4 mothers (23%) who sought mental health support for their child could not obtain care when it was needed, most often due to cost.
  • Cost remains the primary barrier—even for insured families:
    Although 96% of families have insurance, more than half of mothers (51%) cite cost as the main obstacle to accessing mental health care for their children.
  • Private insurance is not delivering adequate access:
    Among mothers lacking sufficient access to care, 80% have private insurance, and fewer than half believe their plans provide adequate mental health coverage.
  • Children’s and parents’ mental health are closely linked:
    Mothers worried about their children’s mental health are significantly more likely to struggle with their own mental health, highlighting the interconnected nature of family well-being.
  • Availability does not equal usability:
    Even when services exist, families face practical barriers—including difficulty accessing therapists, inconsistent school-based supports, limited provider training, and scheduling constraints that make care inaccessible.
  • School-based supports emerge as the most effective solution:
    Across qualitative responses, mothers most frequently identified expanded, well-resourced school-based mental health services as the clearest and most actionable path to meeting children’s needs.

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Methodology
Count on Mothers conducts nationwide surveys and qualitative research with U.S. mothers. Findings are analyzed and reported in aggregate to inform research publications and decision-making related to families.
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