In a new report by the National Center for Health Statistics, or NCHS, the suicide rate among older people has increased. According to the provisional data, the United States suicide rates reached an 80-year high in 2022 of nearly 50,000 people. The most prominent rate is among men who’re 75 and older; it is nearly 44 deaths per 100,000 people.
Half of suicide deaths in the US involve firearms (Photo: huffingtonpost)
National Center For Health Statistics Shows US Suicide Rate Has Risen
SOURCE– According to recent data from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), suicide among older people has increased precipitously. The US suicide rates reached an 80-year high last year of nearly 50,000 people.
In the provisional data from the National Center for Health Statistics, suicide deaths among people ages 25 and below have declined from 2021, however, suicides among people ages 35 and older have risen. In the data shown by the National Center for Health Statistics, the most salient rate is among men ages 75 and older, with nearly 44 deaths per 100,000 people.
Non-Hispanic white men have the highest rates of suicide at older ages, according to Sally Curtin, a National Center for Health Statistics statistician and lead author of the report. According to National Center for Health Statistics, 70% of suicide deaths among elderly people involve firearms.
READ ALSO: Texas Supreme Court Has Put On Hold A Judge’s Ruling That Granted A Pregnant Woman With Fatally Ill Fetus Permission To Have An Abortion
National Center for Health Statistics Experts Attribute The Increase In Suicide Deaths Of Older Men To COVID-19 Pandemic
According to lead author and statistician Sally Curtin, the latest increase in deaths began in 2020. National Center for Health Statistics attributes these suicide deaths to the fallout from COVID-19 pandemic. This is because there was less social connection during the pandemic, health care access was also lacking during that time, and lastly, the availability of firearms in the US, which is the major contributor to suicide deaths in the US.
In an article by CNN, the key factor contributing to suicide deaths among older men is firearms. More than half of firearm-related deaths in the United States are suicides, with more than half of suicide deaths involving guns.
The impetus for each suicide differs, but psychologists have identified some leading triggers among older people called the “Five D’s.” The five D’s are depression, disease with pain and illness, disability due to functional impairment, disconnectedness from people, and access to deadly weapons.
Learning how to reach out for help is important for people who are feeling suicidal. Find a person who is willing to listen to your thoughts and feelings.
READ ALSO: Minnesota Police Arrested The 44-Year-Old Who Stabbed The Grocery Worker In Torso With Golf Club
