Native Americans face the highest rate of death by suicide across the United States, according to a report from KFF Health News published Jan. 22 in CNN.
Here are four takeaways from the report:
- Non-Hispanic Indigenous populations experience higher rates of death by suicide than any other racial or ethnic group in the United States.
- Suicide rates among Indigenous people have remained high, especially in those between 10 and 24 years old.
- Limited mental health resources are available through the Indian Health Service, with the report saying one person with the organization is responsible for addressing suicide across nearly 600 tribal nations.
- Twenty-five percent of all suicides in Montana — the state with the third-highest rate of suicide deaths — between 2017 and 2021 were among Native Americans, despite only being 6.5% of the population.