Trends in U.S. Suicide Rates Described for 2001 to 2021

Rates increased from 2001 to 2018, then decreased through 2020 and increased in 2021

By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter

FRIDAY, April 14, 2023 (HealthDay News) — Age-adjusted suicide rates in the United States increased from 2001 to 2018, then decreased to 2020, and increased in 2021, according to an April data brief published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Center for Health Statistics.

Matthew F. Garnett, M.P.H., and Sally C. Curtin, from the National Center for Health Statistics in Hyattsville, Maryland, presented final suicide rates from 2001 to 2021 by sex and age and by race and Hispanic origin for 2020 to 2021 using data from the National Vital Statistics System.

The researchers found that following an increase in the suicide rate from 2001 to 2018, the age-adjusted rate decreased through 2020, then increased in 2021 (10.7 to 14.2 to 13.5 to 14.1 per 100,000 standard population, respectively). During the study period, trends in female suicides varied, with the increase from 2020 to 2021 only significant for those aged 75 years and older. For males aged 15 to 24, 25 to 44, 65 to 74, and 75 years and older, suicide rates increased significantly between 2020 and 2021. Suicide rates increased significantly from 2020 to 2021 for non-Hispanic Black and non-Hispanic White females. From 2020 to 2021, significant increases were seen in suicide rates for non-Hispanic American Indian or Alaska Native, Black, and White males.

“Data previously reported for 2019 and 2020 showed that for several subgroups, including women aged 25 to 74 and men aged 45 to 64 and 65 to 74, suicide rates had been declining from recent peaks seen in 2018,” the authors write. “Data in 2021 show that the declines for some groups may have slowed or reversed.”