Marriage therapy saves money for taxpayers, health insurers

Marriage therapy saves money for taxpayers, health insurers

A recent study suggests that when couples decide to get help instead of a divorce, those who foot the bill for counseling -- taxpayers and insurers, for example -- receive a benefit as well.

Dr. Ben Caldwell is the assistant program director for the Marital and Family Therapy program at Alliant International University in California. He and two colleagues wanted to find out if relationship counseling would ultimately save taxpayers money. Their study revealed that not only government but health insurers as well would get a sizable return on their investment were they to pay for marital therapy.

Caldwell explains that a divorce costs taxpayers an average of $30,000, while a full-course of marital therapy costs about $1,500. "Now therapy doesn't work for everyone, of course, but the most current models of doing couples therapy that we have work quite well," he says. "And what we found was if government paid for the screening and treatment of marriages in trouble, then they would get a return of about $1.85 for every dollar spent."

The direct savings, he explains, comes from families not needing temporary housing assistance, food stamps, and child support enforcement. Taxpayers also save indirectly because higher marriage rates result in lower crime and a lower incidence of child abuse, he says.

According to Caldwell, if health insurance companies paid for the therapy, they would see a return of $1.48 for every dollar spent. He explains that couples who are in improved marriages are also physically healthier. "There has been research done before my research that said [for] the average couple who completes marriage therapy -- even if it's not successful by any other measure -- the average reduction in healthcare costs for the six months after treatment is about 21 percent," he states.

Caldwell says the government will see a return on its money even if only 16 percent of troubled marriages get marital counseling -- and health insurers if 41 percent of married couples seek the help they need.