Issue Category: Substance Misuse and Mental Health

New CDC Data Shows 4 Percent Rise in Suicides in 2021

On September 30, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released a new report on provisional data on suicide mortality in 2021. The new data shows a 4 percent increase in the national suicide rate—rising from 13.5 deaths per 100,000 population in 2020 to 14.0 deaths per 100,000 population in 2021. In contrast, the national suicide rate declined in both 2019 and 2020, though it had steadily increased over the previous two decades.

The report also includes additional information on suicide by sex, age group, and month. Key takeaways:

  • Suicide rates increased more among males (3 percent increase) than females (2 percent increase).
  • Suicide rates increased for people in nearly all age groups. The only exception was a 2 percent decline for people age 75 and over, though it was not a statistically significant change.
  • The largest statistically significant increase among all sex/age groups was for males aged 15–24, with an 8 percent increase in suicide rate from 2020 to 2021. Females aged 10–14 had the largest percentage increase in suicide rate (15 percent), though the change was not statistically significant due to a relatively small numbers of cases.
  • There were more suicides across all months of 2021 compared with 2020, except in January, February, and July. The largest increase across all the months was an 11 percent increase in suicide rate in October.

The report does not include racial/ethnic or geographic information, nor information on suicide method—all critical pieces to understanding the full picture. For example, data from 2020 showed higher rates of  suicide among American Indian, Black, and Latino people and of suicide by firearm—all in a year when the overall suicide rate declined. The National Center for Health Statistics will likely release final 2021 mortality data, including these additional data points, in December.

“The increase in suicide is devastating,” said J. Nadine Gracia, M.D., MSCE, President and CEO of Trust for America’s Health (TFAH). “The new data underscores the need for more attention on this issue and action to prevent future suicides—by federal policymakers, the private and non-profit sectors, and every community across the nation. This study is a wakeup call that we continue to face a mental health and substance use crisis, but we can prevent these tragic deaths.”

The most recent Pain in the Nation report from TFAH includes 2020 data and an analysis of longer-term trends, as well as policy recommendations for reducing alcohol, drug, and suicide deaths. The new CDC report reaffirms the importance of many of these recommendations, including to:

  • Strengthen the continuum of crisis intervention programs with a focus on the newly established “988” lifeline.
  • Expand CDC’s comprehensive suicide-prevention efforts, including measures to strengthen economic supports, promote connectedness, and create protective environments.
  • Address the social determinants of health and promote resilience in children, families, and communities, including through economic supports, access to quality childcare, and prevention and early intervention efforts in schools.
  • Build grassroots community capacity for early identification and intervention for individuals with mental health and substance use disorders, including through community-based or non-traditional settings.
  • Limit access to lethal means of suicide, including drugs and firearms, among individuals at higher risk of suicide through state and federal laws, more funding of foundational research, and the adoption of counseling programs in healthcare systems.

 

 

Pain in the Nation 2022: Congressional Briefing and Webinar

Deaths associated with alcohol, drugs, and suicide took the lives of 186,763 Americans in 2020, a 20 percent one year increase in the combined death rate and the highest number of substance misuse deaths ever recorded for a single year. These data are part of a report releasing today, Pain in the Nation: The Epidemics of Alcohol, Drug, and Suicide Deaths, the latest in a series of reports tracking the nation’s deaths of despair crisis produced by Trust of America’s Health and Well Being Trust.

No single program or policy will be a cure-all to address these issues. Instead, a comprehensive approach that focuses on the underlying causes of these deaths of despair can help heal individuals and communities and make them more resilient.

Resources:

Trust for America’s Health

Well Being Trust

Estados Unidos experimentó las tasas combinadas más altas de muertes debido al alcohol, las drogas y el suicidio durante la pandemia de COVID-19

Las muertes abarcaron edades, grupos raciales y étnicos y geografía, pero dañaron de manera desproporcionada a ciertos jóvenes y personas de color.

Las soluciones son conocidas y deben implementarse

 

(Washington, DC – 24 de mayo de 2022) – Las muertes asociadas con el alcohol, las drogas y el suicidio cobraron la vida de 186.763 estadounidenses en el 2020, un aumento del 20 % en un año en la tasa de mortalidad combinada y la mayor cantidad de muertes por uso indebido de sustancias jamás registrada durante un solo año, según un informe publicado hoy por Trust for America’s Health (TFAH) y Well Being Trust.

Además, los datos provisionales de los Centros para el Control y la Prevención de Enfermedades muestran que las muertes por sobredosis de drogas continuaron aumentando en el 2021.

Si bien las muertes por alcohol, drogas y suicidio han aumentado durante décadas, el aumento durante el 2020 no tuvo precedentes y fue impulsado por un aumento del 30 % en la tasa de muertes inducidas por drogas y un aumento del 27 % en la tasa de muertes inducidas por el alcohol. Las tasas combinadas de muertes por alcohol, drogas y suicidio aumentaron en los 50 estados excepto New Hampshire, y por primera vez dos estados (Virginia Occidental y Nuevo México) superaron las 100 muertes por cada 100,000 residentes estatales por alcohol, drogas y suicidio combinados en un solo año

o La tasa general de muertes inducidas por drogas aumentó en un 30 por ciento, en gran parte impulsada por aumentos en las muertes debido al uso de opioides sintéticos y psicoestimulantes. La tasa de muerte inducida por drogas aumentó para todos los grupos de población menos uno: los mayores de 75 años. Hubo aumentos particularmente grandes en las comunidades de color, entre los jóvenes (de 17 años o menos) y los adultos jóvenes (de 18 a 34 años) y en las regiones sur y oeste del país.

o Las tasas de mortalidad inducida por el alcohol aumentaron en un 27 por ciento, y el aumento abarcó grupos demográficos y partes del país, incluidos los 50 estados y el Distrito de Columbia. Los aumentos fueron particularmente altos entre los adultos jóvenes, los indios americanos/nativos de Alaska y las comunidades asiáticas, y entre los que viven en el Medio Oeste.

o Las tasas generales de suicidio disminuyeron en un 3 por ciento, pero esa tendencia no fue universal. La disminución se produjo entre los blancos, pero las muertes por suicidio durante el año aumentaron entre los indios americanos, los negros y los latinos. Las tasas de suicidio de adultos de 35 a 74 años de edad disminuyeron, pero las tasas de jóvenes y adultos jóvenes aumentaron.

“Con las tendencias que continúan yendo en la dirección equivocada, debemos preguntarnos, ¿qué se necesita para pasar a una acción sólida e integral? La historia detrás de estos datos es más que devastadora y desgarradora para aquellas familias que han sufrido pérdidas”, dijo el Dr. Benjamin F. Miller, presidente de Well Being Trust. “Empecemos a atender esta crisis con la urgencia que se merece llevando atención donde está la gente. Desde las escuelas hasta la atención primaria y nuestros lugares de trabajo, asegurémonos de que todos los lugares estén equipados para abordar la salud mental y el abuso de sustancias. Esta no es solo la responsabilidad del campo de la salud mental y las adicciones, sino toda nuestra responsabilidad”.

TFAH y Well Being Trust han estado informando muertes inducidas por alcohol, drogas y suicidio como parte de su iniciativa Pain in the Nation desde 2018. En el informe inaugural de la iniciativa de 2018, las muertes por alcohol, drogas y suicidio representaron 55,403 muertes por año, en comparación con las 186.763 muertes asociadas con el alcohol, las drogas o el suicidio en el informe de este año. Según los autores del informe y otros expertos, el sorprendente aumento de las muertes por alcohol y drogas en el 2020 se vio exacerbado por: un aumento continuo de las sobredosis de opioides sintéticos y psicoestimulantes y la ansiedad, el estrés, el dolor, la interrupción de los programas de recuperación del abuso de sustancias y las dificultades financieras muchas personas y familias experimentaron durante la pandemia de COVID-19.

El informe incluye recomendaciones sobre los pasos que los gobiernos federal, estatal y local deben tomar para comenzar a revertir la crisis de las muertes por desesperación. Incluyen:

Invertir en programas que promuevan la salud y prevengan el uso indebido de sustancias y el suicidio:

  • Apoyar programas en la escuela enfocados en la salud mental de los estudiantes y la prevención del uso de sustancias.
  • Fortalecer los programas informados sobre el trauma y culturalmente competentes y lingüísticamente apropiados dentro de todas las agencias que atienden a los jóvenes, incluido el sistema de justicia juvenil.
  • Fortalecer la continuidad de los programas de intervención en crisis con un enfoque en la línea de vida “988” recientemente establecida.
  • Expandir los esfuerzos integrales de prevención del suicidio de los CDC, incluidas medidas para fortalecer los apoyos económicos, promover la conexión y crear entornos protectores.
  • Desarrollar programas que aborden los determinantes sociales de la salud y promuevan la resiliencia en los niños, las familias y las comunidades, incluidos aquellos enfocados en la prevención de experiencias infantiles adversas.

 

Abordar las crisis de uso indebido y sobredosis de sustancias:

  • Promover políticas de reducción de daños para reducir las sobredosis y las infecciones transmitidas por la sangre, incluido el aumento del acceso a programas de servicio de jeringas, naloxona y tiras reactivas de fentanilo.
  • Preservar y ampliar los programas que crean un acceso más flexible al tratamiento del trastorno por consumo de sustancias durante la pandemia.
  • Financiamiento directo del acuerdo de litigio de opioides para la prevención primaria del abuso de sustancias por parte de los jóvenes.
  • Reducir el consumo excesivo de alcohol mediante políticas que limiten dónde y cuándo se puede servir/comprar alcohol y mediante el uso de impuestos especiales sobre el alcohol.

Transformar el sistema de prevención de salud mental y abuso de sustancias

  • Aumentar el acceso al tratamiento de salud mental y uso de sustancias a través de la plena aplicación de la Ley de Equidad en Adicción y Paridad en Salud Mental.
  • Combatir el estigma sobre los problemas de salud mental y el acceso al servicio.
  • Modernizar los servicios de salud física y mental alineando la prestación de servicios, el pago de los proveedores, las medidas de calidad y la capacitación hacia la salud integral de las personas y la atención integrada.
  • Desarrollar la capacidad comunitaria de base para la identificación e intervención tempranas de personas con trastornos de salud mental y uso de sustancias, incluso a través de entornos comunitarios o no tradicionales.

“Es imperativo que los funcionarios de todos los niveles del gobierno actúen sobre las políticas recomendadas en este informe. Los datos son sorprendentemente claros: las vidas corren peligro en todas las comunidades debido al alcohol, las drogas y el suicidio, y las comunidades que experimentan desventajas debido a las desigualdades sociales, económicas y ambientales de larga data sufren un impacto desproporcionado. Existe una necesidad urgente de actuar para salvar vidas”, dijo J. Nadine Gracia, presidenta y directora ejecutiva de Trust for America’s Health.

 

Lea el informe completo

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Trust for America’s Health es una organización no partidista y sin fines de lucro que promueve la salud óptima para cada persona y comunidad y hace de la prevención de enfermedades y lesiones una prioridad nacional.

Well Being Trust es una filantropía de impacto dedicada a promover la salud mental, social y espiritual de la nación.

 

U.S. Drug Overdose Deaths Increased by 31 Percent in 2020; Up 56 Percent for Synthetic Opioids

(Washington, DC – January 4, 2022) According to a National Center for Health Statistics report released the last week of 2021 using official annual mortality data, 91,799 Americans died from drug overdoses in 2020. This is an astounding 31 percent increase over the 2019 rate and the largest year-over-year rate increase on record. Additional data suggests that 2021 drug overdose deaths continued to increase, underscoring the negative impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the health and well-being of Americans.

The increases in drug deaths occurred nationally, spanning age, sex, and racial/ethnic groups. In both 2019 and 2020, the highest overdose deaths rates were for American Indian/Alaska Native people and the largest percentage increase in drug overdose death rates from 2019 to 2020 were seen in Black and Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander people. These data show again the urgent need for comprehensive action to address the nation’s growing substance misuse crisis among diverse populations.

Additional analysis by Trust for America’s Health (TFAH) and Well Being Trust (WBT) of state-level data show nearly all states and the District of Columbia saw increases between 2019 and 2020, including very large ones for many states.

  • Five states—Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and West Virginia—had drug overdose death rates that increased by more than 50 percent between 2019 and 2020.
  • Just seven states had increases under 10 percent, including three states (Delaware, New Hampshire, and South Dakota) that saw declines.

“The long-term and recent trends in drug overdoses are alarming, and require more attention from policymakers,” said J. Nadine Gracia, M.D., MSCE, President and CEO of Trust for America’s Health. “As we continue to respond to and work to recover from the pandemic, we must take a comprehensive approach that includes policies and programs that reduce overdoses and help Americans suffering from addiction. Policies that address social, economic, and environmental disadvantage, such as childhood trauma, poverty, and discrimination, are needed to help change the trajectory of alcohol, drug, and suicide deaths in the coming decades.”

Over the last five years, TFAH and WBT have released as series of reports on “deaths of despair” called Pain in the Nation: The Drug, Alcohol and Suicides Epidemics and the Need for a National Resilience Strategy, which include data analysis and recommendations for evidence-based policies and programs that federal, state, and local officials. The 2022 Pain in the Nation report will be released in May.

“This comes down to leadership and action. If we don’t move to do something now, these terrible trends will only continue,” said Benjamin F. Miller, PsyD, President of Well Being Trust. “The data are clear— we need to move beyond talk and push for programs and policies that work; and, we need to do so in a way that recognizes that all communities are different and each are going to benefit from a more tailored approach to address this massive problem.”

Key findings by drug-type from the recent NCHS report include:

  • Overall drug overdoses deaths: 91,799 Americans died from drug overdoses in 2020, a rate of 28.3 deaths per 100,000 people. This is a rate 31 percent higher than over 2019 when 70,630 Americans died of drug overdoses (21.6 deaths per 100,000).
  • Opioid overdose deaths: 68,630 Americans died from opioid overdoses in 2020, a rate of 21.4 deaths per 100,000 people. This is a rate 38 percent higher than 2019 when 49,860 Americans died of opioid overdoses (15.5 deaths per 100,000).
  • Synthetic opioid overdose deaths: 56,516 Americans died from synthetic opioid overdoses in 2020, a rate of 17.8 deaths per 100,000 people. That is a rate 56 percent higher than 2019, when 36,359 Americans died of synthetic opioids overdoses (11.4 deaths per 100,000). The rate of synthetic opioid overdose deaths has increased more than fivefold over the past five years.
  • Cocaine overdose deaths: 19,447 Americans died from cocaine overdoses in 2020, a rate of 6.0 deaths per 100,000 people. That rate is 22 percent higher than 2019, when 15,883 Americans died of cocaine overdoses (4.9 deaths per 100,000). The rate of cocaine overdose deaths has increased by almost threefold over the past five years.
  • Psychostimulant overdose deaths: 23,837 Americans died from psychostimulants in 2020, a rate of 7.5 deaths per 100,000 people. That’s a rate 50 percent higher than 2019, when 16,167 Americans died from psychostimulant overdoses (5.0 deaths per 100,000). The rate of psychostimulants overdose death has increased by fourfold over the past five years.

Additional annual, racial/ethnic, and state-level data can be found below.

Drug Overdose Deaths, 1999-2020

Year Deaths Deaths per 100,000 (Age Adjusted)
1999 16,849 6.1
2000 17,415 6.2
2001 19,394 6.8
2002 23,518 8.2
2003 25,785 8.9
2004 27,424 9.4
2005 29,813 10.1
2006 34,425 11.5
2007 36,010 11.9
2008 36,450 11.9
2009 37,004 11.9
2010 38,329 12.3
2011 41,340 13.2
2012 41,502 13.1
2013 43,982 13.8
2014 47,055 14.7
2015 52,404 16.3
2016 63,632 19.8
2017 70,237 21.7
2018 67,367 20.7
2019 70,630 21.6
2020 91,799 28.3

Source: National Vital Statistics System, National Center for Health Statistics

Drug Overdose Deaths by Racial/Ethnic Groups, 2019-2020

Racial/Ethnic Group 2019 Deaths 2019 Deaths Per 100,000         (Age Adjusted) 2020 Deaths 2020 Deaths Per 100,000         (Age Adjusted) Change in Death Rate, 2019–2020
Non-Hispanic White 50,044 26.2 62,312 33.1 26%
Non-Hispanic Black 10,517 24.8 15,256 35.8 44%
Non-Hispanic American Indian/ Alaska Native 723 30.5 1,009 42.5 39%
Non-Hispanic Asian 679 3.3 935 4.6 39%
Non-Hispanic Native Hawaiian/ Other Pacific Islander 58 9.5 86 13.7 44%
Hispanic 7,473 12.7 10,606 17.6 39%

Source: National Vital Statistics System, National Center for Health Statistics

Drug Overdose Deaths by State, 2019-2020

State 2019 Deaths 2019 Deaths Per 100,000          (Age Adjusted) 2020 Deaths 2020 Deaths Per 100,000          (Age Adjusted) Change in Death Rate, 2019–2020
Alabama 768 16.3 1029 22.3 37%
Alaska 132 17.8 160 22.0 24%
Arizona 1907 26.8 2550 35.8 33%
Arkansas 388 13.5 546 19.1 41%
California 6198 15.0 8908 21.8 46%
Colorado 1079 18.0 1492 24.9 38%
Connecticut 1214 34.7 1371 39.1 13%
Delaware 435 48.0 444 47.3 -2%
D.C. 311 43.2 424 58.1 34%
Florida 5268 25.5 7231 35.0 37%
Georgia 1408 13.1 1916 18.0 38%
Hawaii 242 15.9 274 18.3 15%
Idaho 265 15.1 287 15.9 5%
Illinois 2790 21.9 3549 28.1 28%
Indiana 1699 26.6 2321 36.7 38%
Iowa 352 11.5 432 14.3 25%
Kansas 403 14.3 490 17.4 22%
Kentucky 1380 32.5 2083 49.2 51%
Louisiana 1267 28.3 1896 42.7 51%
Maine 371 29.9 496 39.7 33%
Maryland 2369 38.2 2771 44.6 17%
Massachusetts 2210 32.1 2302 33.9 6%
Michigan 2385 24.4 2759 28.6 17%
Minnesota 792 14.2 1050 19.0 34%
Mississippi 394 13.6 586 21.1 55%
Missouri 1583 26.9 1875 32.1 19%
Montana 143 14.1 162 15.6 10%
Nebraska 161 8.7 214 11.3 30%
Nevada 647 20.1 832 26.0 29%
New Hampshire 407 32.0 393 30.3 -5%
New Jersey 2805 31.7 2840 32.1 1%
New Mexico 599 30.2 784 39.0 29%
New York 3617 18.2 4965 25.4 39%
North Carolina 2266 22.3 3146 30.9 39%
North Dakota 82 11.4 114 15.6 37%
Ohio 4251 38.3 5204 47.2 23%
Oklahoma 645 16.7 762 19.4 17%
Oregon 615 14.0 803 18.7 34%
Pennsylvania 4377 35.6 5168 42.4 19%
Rhode Island 307 29.5 397 38.2 29%
South Carolina 1127 22.7 1739 34.9 54%
South Dakota 86 10.5 83 10.3 -2%
Tennessee 2089 31.2 3034 45.6 46%
Texas 3136 10.8 4172 14.1 31%
Utah 571 18.9 622 20.5 8%
Vermont 133 23.8 190 32.9 38%
Virginia 1547 18.3 2240 26.6 45%
Washington 1259 15.8 1733 22.0 39%
West Virginia 870 52.8 1330 81.4 54%
Wisconsin 1201 21.1 1531 27.7 31%
Wyoming 79 14.1 99 17.4 23%

Source: TFAH and WBT analysis of data from the National Center for Health Statistics

Trust for America’s Health is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that promotes optimal health for every person and community and makes the prevention of illness and injury a national priority. www.tfah.org Twitter:@HealthyAmerica1

Well Being Trust is a national foundation dedicated to advancing the mental, social, and spiritual health of the nation. Created to include participation from organizations across sectors and perspectives, Well Being Trust is committed to innovating and addressing the most critical mental health challenges facing America, and to transforming individual and community well-being. www.wellbeingtrust.org. Twitter: @WellBeingTrust

Trust for America’s Health and Well Being Trust Applaud the Surgeon General’s Advisory on Youth Mental Health

The challenges to our children’s mental health were many before COVID-19 and made worse by the pandemic – immediate action is needed

(December 7, 2021) – Trust for America’s Health and Well Being Trust strongly applaud U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy’s Advisory on Youth Mental Health released today.

“We applaud the Surgeon General for not only drawing more attention to the issue of youth mental health, but reminding us that this problem, significant before COVID-19, has been negatively impacted during, and could only get worse after the pandemic without robust action,” said Benjamin F. Miller, PsyD, President of Well Being Trust.  “By proactively addressing mental health, including bringing care to where people are, we are more likely to meet the moment in a way that can help countless young people and their families.”

The Surgeon General’s advisory calls for “a swift and coordinated response” to the nation’s youth mental health crisis and demonstrates the need for all sectors of society to be part of the solution with recommendations for what individuals, families, community organizations, technology companies and government can do to improve and protect young people’s mental health.

“One of the strengths of this advisory is that it recognizes that in order to support young people’s mental health we need to address the social and economic conditions in their lives with multisector initiatives, said J. Nadine Gracia, M.D., MSCE, President and CEO of Trust for America’s Health. “Where a child lives, where they go to school, their family’s access to employment and safe housing all impact their mental health.”

TFAH and WBT’s Pain in the Nation series has tracked the nation’s deaths of despair since 2017 including the escalating youth mental health crisis. Its report Addressing a Crisis: Cross-Sector Strategies to Prevent Adolescent Substance Use and Suicide. makes recommendations for cross sector action.

 

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Trust for America’s Health is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that promotes optimal health for every person and community and makes the prevention of illness and injury a national priority. Twitter: @HealthyAmerica1

Well Being Trust is a national foundation dedicated to advancing the mental, social, and spiritual health of the nation. Created to include participation from organizations across sectors and perspectives, Well Being Trust is committed to innovating and addressing the most critical mental health challenges facing America, and to transforming individual and community well-being. www.wellbeingtrust.org. Twitter: @WellBeingTrust

 

 

Pain in the Nation: How High Rates of Suicide, Drugs and Overdose Deaths Require a Comprehensive Resiliency Strategy

On May 19, 2021,  Trust for America’s Health and Well Being Trust hosted a virtual Congressional briefing on the Pain in the Nation report series. Over the past decade more than one million Americans have died from alcohol, drugs and suicide. Now this trend has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, a fragmented health system, and social and community conditions. No single program or policy will be a cure-all to address these issues. Instead, a comprehensive approach that focuses on the underlying causes of these “deaths of despair” can make even our most vulnerable resilient and heal a fracturing nation.