COLUMBUS, Ohio — As we continue to observe Mental Health Awareness Month in May, the Ohio Department of Health has released a report showing suicides in the state are increasing.
In its Suicide Demographics and Trends 2021 report, the ODH found that after a two-year decline, the number of suicides in the state went up. Data revealed that deaths increased in 2021 by 8% over the previous year to 1,766. That number is still lower than Ohio's 10-year high of 1,836 deaths in 2018.
Five Ohioans die by suicide every day, and one youth dies every 34 hours, the ODH stated.
More key findings from the report showed the following:
- In 2021, suicide was the second-leading cause of death among Ohioans 10-34 years of age and the 12th-leading cause of death in Ohio, overall.
- From 2020 to 2021, white non-Hispanic males and females had the largest increases in the rate of suicide (7%).
- In 2021, adults 25-44 years of age had the highest rate of suicide, which increased 13% from 2020, compared with 5% increases among other reported age groups.
- Among males in 2021, those 75-years and older had the highest rate of suicide.
- Among females in 2021, those 45-54-years-old had the highest number and rate of suicide.
“Suicide is a human tragedy, and any increase is of course deeply concerning,” said ODH Director Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff. “This puts more emphasis on the importance of Governor DeWine’s efforts to prioritize the expansion of Ohio’s mental-health services. All of us, though, need to pay attention and recognize when someone is struggling and know where they can turn to for help.”
How Ohio says it is addressing mental health
In 2020, Gov. DeWine's RecoveryOhio and the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (OhioMHAS) partnered with The Ohio Suicide Prevention Foundation to create The Suicide Prevention Plan for Ohio, a blueprint to mobilize and align efforts to prevent suicide.
Since then, the state says it has implemented the following actions:
- Awareness campaigns and continued support for crisis intervention training (CIT) for first responders
- Launching the 988 National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline statewide
- Teaming up with Ohio Chamber of Commerce to release a Suicide Prevention Employer Toolkit to help employers address mental health
- Creating the $1.2 billion Student Wellness and Success Fund, including the funding of nearly 1,300 mental health programs in almost two-thirds of the state's school districts
- Partnering with Ohio schools for Sources of Strength and Signs of Suicide programming; launching the Ohio School Wellness Initiative with 70 pilot schools across the state
- Focusing on groups that are a high-risk for suicide, including youth, racial and ethnic minorities, and veterans/military members with specialized programs emphasizing suicide prevention efforts
What are Gov. DeWine's future plans to address mental heath?
The ODH says DeWine's proposed 2024-25 budget "prioritizes mental health and significantly invests funds to prevent and treat mental illness," including:
- $8 million each over the next two fiscal years to continue and expand proven suicide prevention programs and strategies outlined in the 2020 Suicide Prevention Plan.
- $100 million for the creation of an innovative State of Ohio Action for Resiliency Network – or SOAR Network – to develop, evaluate, and implement increasingly effective mental health and addiction prevention, treatment, and recovery strategies.
- $50 million for pediatric behavioral health workforce, integration of behavioral and primary health, and development of Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facilities (PRTF) -- a specialty, secure residential option that is part of the State’s OhioRISE (Resilience through Integrated Systems and Excellence) initiative led by Ohio Medicaid
