Suicide numbers up in Kansas – highest rate in 20 years

Troubling news about the Kansas suicide rate.

The number of suicides in the state has increased by more than half in recent years, particularly in the rural northwest part of Kansas.

“Suicide risk is highest when people feel like they are a burden on others, feel outcast or isolated from others and have ready access to lethal means,” said Andy Brown, commissioner of behavioral health services with Kansas Department of Aging and Disability Services.

In 2018, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention retracted a report suggesting suicide is higher among farmers than any other occupation, but still concludes that farmers suffer a higher suicide rate than most workers.

Nationally, suicide has been on the rise since 1999.

Mental health professionals say the geographical isolation,low population and struggling economy in rural parts of are challenges increasing suicide risk.

Kansas overall had 555 suicides in 2018 –  the highest rate in 20 years.