The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which released the figures, has not yet calculated the suicide rate for the year. However, available data indicates that suicides in the United States are more frequent than at any time since the start of World War II.
“There is something wrong. That number shouldn’t go up,” said Christina Wilbur, a 45-year-old Florida resident whose son shot himself last year.
“My son should not have died,” she commented. “I know it’s complicated, really. But we have to be able to do something. Something we’re not doing. Because whatever we’re doing right now, it’s not helping.”
Experts caution that suicide is complicated, and that recent increases could be due to a number of factors, including higher rates of depression and limited availability of mental health services.
But one of the biggest factors is the increasing availability of firearms, said Jill Harkavy-Friedman, senior vice president for research at the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
Suicide attempts with firearms end in death much more frequently than those by other means, and the sale of firearms has skyrocketed, so there are more and more of them in homes.
A recent Johns Hopkins University analysis used preliminary data from 2022 to calculate that the overall rate of firearm suicide in the country rose last year to an all-time high. The researchers found that, for the first time, the rate of firearm suicide among black teens exceeded that of their white peers.
“I don’t know if you can talk about suicide without talking about firearms,” Harkavy-Friedman said.
Suicides in the United States rose steadily from the early 2000s until 2018, when the national rate reached its highest level since 1941. There were some 48,300 suicide deaths that year, or 14.2 per 100,000 Americans. .
The rate fell slightly in 2019. And it fell again in 2020, during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Some experts linked it to a phenomenon seen in the early stages of wars and natural disasters, when people come together and support each other.
But in 2021, suicides increased by 4%. Last year, according to the new data, the number increased by more than 1,000, to 49,449, an increase of 3% over the previous year. The provisional data is derived from US death certificates and is considered nearly complete, but may change slightly as death data is revised in the coming months.
The largest increases were seen in older adults. Deaths rose nearly 7% in people ages 45 to 64, and more than 8% in those 65 and older. White men, in particular, have very high rates, the CDC noted.
Many middle-aged and older people are experiencing problems such as job or spouse loss, and it’s important to reduce stigma and other barriers that prevent them from getting help, said Dr. Debra Houry, CDC’s chief medical officer.
Suicides in adults ages 25 to 44 grew by approximately 1%. The new data indicates that suicide became the second leading cause of death in that age group in 2022, up from the fourth in 2021.
Despite the grim statistics, some say there is reason to be optimistic. A year ago a national crisis line was launched, which means anyone in the United States can dial 988 to get in touch with mental health specialists.
In 2022 there was a decrease of more than 8% in suicides among people between the ages of 10 and 24. This may be due to increased attention to youth mental health issues and a drive to focus schools and others on the problem, CDC officials said.
The CDC is expanding a suicide program to fund more prevention efforts in different communities. And there’s growing awareness of the problem and that it’s okay to ask for help, public health officials said.
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The Associated Press Department of Health and Science receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Science and Education Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for the content.
FOUNTAIN: Associated Press
