Suicide deaths down 5% in 2020, although rise possible among people of color

Despite dire predictions, the number of suicides fell by 5% in 2020,  although localized studies suggest the trends were worse among communities of color (Source: “U.S. Suicides Declined Over All in 2020 but May Have Risen Among People of Color,” New York Times, April 15).

Since the pandemic started, mental health experts have worried that grief, financial strain and social isolation may take an unbearable toll on American psyches.

While nearly 350,000 Americans died from Covid-19, the number of suicides dropped by 5%, to 44,834 deaths in 2020 from 47,511 in 2019. It is the second year in a row that the number has fallen, after cresting in 2018.

But while the number of suicides may have declined overall, preliminary studies of local communities in states like Illinois, Maryland and Connecticut found a rise in suicides among Black Americans and other people of color when compared with previous years.

Whether that is the case nationally is not known. Federal health officials have yet to release a detailed breakdown of the race and ethnicity of last year’s suicide victims, and some experts have cautioned against making generalizations based on trends in a few localities.