- In 2019, suicide was the second leading cause of death for American Indian/Alaska Natives between the ages of 10 and 34.1
- American Indian/Alaska Natives are 60 percent more likely to experience the feeling that everything is an effort, all or most of the time, as compared to non-Hispanic whites.
- The overall death rate from suicide for American Indian/Alaska Native adults is about 20 percent higher as compared to the non-Hispanic white population.
- In 2019, adolescent American Indian/Alaska Native females, ages 15-19, had a death rate that was five times higher than non-Hispanic white females in the same age group.
- In 2018, American Indian/Alaska Native males, ages 15-24, had a death rate that was twice that of non-Hispanic white males in the same age group.
- Violent deaths, unintentional injuries, homicide, and suicide, account for 75 percent of all mortality in the second decade of life for American Indian/Alaska Natives.2
MENTAL HEALTH STATUS
| Serious psychological distress in the past year among adults 18 years of age and over, percentage, 2019 | ||
| American Indian/Alaska Native* | Non-Hispanic White | American Indian/Alaska Native / Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 11.6 | 12.7 | 0.9 |
Source: SAMHSA, 2020. Results from the 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: Mental Health Detailed Tables. Table 10.43B
https://www.samhsa.gov/data/report/2019-nsduh-detailed-tables [PDF | 10.22MB]
| Percentage of population with feelings of sadness, hopelessness, worthlessness, or that everything is an effort, all or most of the time, among persons 18 years of age and over, 2018 | |||
| American Indian/Alaska Native | Non-Hispanic White | American Indian/Alaska Native / Non-Hispanic White Ratio | |
| Sadness | -- | 2.6 | -- |
| Hopelessness | -- | 2.2 | -- |
| Worthlessness | 3.4 | 2.3 | 1.5 |
| Everything is an effort | 10.5 | 6.6 | 1.6 |
Source: CDC 2021. Summary Health Statistics: National Health Interview Survey: 2018. Table A-7.
https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nhis/shs/tables.htm
| Percentage of population with serious psychological distress among persons 18 years of age and over, 2018 | |||
| American Indian/Alaska Native | Non-Hispanic White | American Indian/Alaska Native / Non-Hispanic White Ratio | |
| Total | 4.5 | 3.8 | 1.2 |
Source: CDC 2021. Summary Health Statistics: National Health Interview Survey: 2018. Table A-8.
https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nhis/shs/tables.htm
DEATH RATES
| Age-adjusted death rates for suicide, by sex, race and Hispanic origin, 2018 | |||
| American Indian/Alaska Native | Non-Hispanic White | American Indian/Alaska Native /Non-Hispanic White Ratio | |
| Male | 33.6 | 28.6 | 1.2 |
| Female | 11.1 | 8.0 | 1.4 |
| Total | 22.3 | 18.1 | 1.2 |
Source: CDC 2021. National Vital Statistics Report, Vol. 69, No. 13. Table 10.
https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr69/nvsr69-13-508.pdf [PDF | 2MB]
| Death rates for suicide, age, race and Hispanic origin, 2018: Men | |||
| American Indian/Alaska Native Men | Non-Hispanic White Men | American Indian/Alaska Native Men / Non-Hispanic White Men Ratio | |
| 15-24 years | 60.7 | 27.3 | 2.3 |
| 25-44 years | 60.2 | 35.8 | 1.7 |
| 45-64 years | 24.5 | 39.5 | 0.6 |
| 65 years and over | -- | 38.2 | -- |
| All ages | 33.6 | 28.6 | 1.2 |
Source: CDC, 2021. Health United States, 2019. Table 9.
https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/2019/009-508.pdf [PDF | 10.22MB]
| Death rates for suicide, age, race and Hispanic origin, 2018: Women | |||
| American Indian/Alaska Native Women | Non-Hispanic White Women | American Indian/Alaska Native Women / Non-Hispanic White Women Ratio | |
| 15-24 years | 17.4 | 6.7 | 2.6 |
| 25-44 years | 18.6 | 10.4 | 1.8 |
| 45-64 years | 7.8 | 13.0 | 0.6 |
| 65 years and over | -- | 6.3 | -- |
| All ages | 11.1 | 8.0 | 1.4 |
Source: CDC, 2021. Health United States, 2019. Table 9.
https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/2019/009-508.pdf [PDF | 10.22MB]
ADOLESCENTS
| Death rates for suicide: ages 15 - 19, 2019 | |||
| American Indian/Alaska Native | Non-Hispanic White | American Indian/Alaska Native / Non-Hispanic White Ratio | |
| Male | 49.1 | 18.3 | 2.7 |
| Female | 29.7 | 5.7 | 5.2 |
| Total | 39.5 | 12.2 | 3.2 |
Source: CDC, 2021. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Web Based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS) [Accessed 04/21/2021]
https://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/index.html
| Suicidal ideation among students in grades 9–12, 2019 Percentage of students who seriously considered suicide | |||
| American Indian/Alaska Native | Non-Hispanic White | American Indian/Alaska Native / Non-Hispanic White Ratio | |
| Men | -- | 13.8 | -- |
| Women | -- | 24.3 | -- |
| Total | 34.9 | 19.1 | 1.8 |
Source: CDC 2021. High School Youth Risk Behavior Survey Data.
https://nccd.cdc.gov/youthonline. [Accessed 04/21/2021]
| Suicidal ideation among students in grades 9–12, 2019 Percentage of students who attempted suicide | |||
| American Indian/Alaska Native | Non-Hispanic White | American Indian/Alaska Native / Non-Hispanic White Ratio | |
| Men | -- | 4.6 | -- |
| Women | -- | 7.3 | -- |
| Total | -- | 6.1 | -- |
Source: CDC 2021. High School Youth Risk Behavior Survey Data.
https://nccd.cdc.gov/youthonline. [Accessed 04/21/2021]
ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE
| Percentage of adults age 18 and over who received mental health services in the past year, 2019 | ||
| American Indian/Alaska Native | Non-Hispanic White | American Indian/Alaska Native / Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 13.9 | 19.8 | 0.7 |
SAMHSA, 2020. Results from the 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: Mental Health Detailed Tables. Table 8.17B
https://www.samhsa.gov/data/report/2019-nsduh-detailed-tables
| Percentage of adults age 18 and over who received prescription medications for mental health services, 2019 | ||
| American Indian/Alaska Native | Non-Hispanic White | American Indian/Alaska Native / Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| 11.1 | 16.6 | 0.7 |
SAMHSA, 2020. Results from the 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: Mental Health Detailed Tables. Table 8.21B
https://www.samhsa.gov/data/report/2019-nsduh-detailed-tables
| Percentage of adults age 18 and over with past year major depressive episode who received treatment for the depression, 2019 | ||
| American Indian/Alaska Native | Non-Hispanic White | American Indian/Alaska Native / Non-Hispanic White Ratio |
| -- | 70.2 | -- |
SAMHSA, 2020. Results from the 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: Mental Health Detailed Tables. Table 8.39B
https://www.samhsa.gov/data/report/2019-nsduh-detailed-tables
*All data in the above surveys relate to non-Hispanic American Indians/Alaska Natives.
1CDC. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS). [Accessed 04/21/2021]. https://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/index.html
2U.S. Surgeon General, 2001. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK44251
Last Edited: 05/19/2021