Suicide rates rose among youth in California and U.S.

The suicide rate for youth in California and the United States was increasing even before COVID-19 entered the picture in 2020.

Since then, the pandemic’s extended social isolation and other stressors have presented newly compounding risk factors for suicide, along with more common factors such as mental illness, access to lethal means, poor family communication, and exposure to others’ suicidal behavior, according to Kids Data.

In California, suicide rates for young people ages 15 to 24 increased from 6.9 per 100,000 youth in 2007-2009 to 8.9 per 100,000 youth in 2017-2019, a nearly 30% increase.

In 2019, the number of suicides among California youth differed greatly by age, gender, and race/ethnicity. Counts don’t provide information on prevalence as rates do, but the sheer numbers indicate populations that may need greater attention from advocates, policymakers, and us all.