Nation’s Governors Mark September as Suicide Awareness Month

Each September, the country observes Suicide Awareness Month. The nationwide observance aims to raise awareness about suicide, identify ways to prevent suicide and remember the lives lost to suicide. As part of the campaign, National Suicide Prevention Awareness Week is observed September 8-14, and September 10 is designated World Suicide Prevention Day.

In the United States, someone dies by suicide every 11 minutes. Suicide can impact anyone - people of all ages and backgrounds. The White House World Suicide Prevention Day proclamation underscores this, noting "nearly 50,000 Americans died by suicide, and in 2022, over 10 million seriously considered suicide. In 2022, suicide was the second leading cause of death for young people aged 10 to 14 and 25 to 34, and the suicide rate for veterans was 50 percent higher than for anyone else.

While Suicide Awareness Month seeks to raise awareness about the country's concerning suicide rates, the awareness month also seek to help American learn that suicide is preventable and several factors can protect an individual, including building effective coping and problem-solving skills; feeling connected to school, community and other institutions; feeling connected to others; and reduced access to lethal means of suicide.

Governors across the country have been commemorating Suicide Prevention Month through a variety of actions, including:

• Alaska: Governor Mike Dunleavy proclaimed Suicide Prevention Week, sharing "the State of Alaska is actively working to ensure agencies and personnel are adequately equipped to offer relief and support to those in-need through The Alaska Statewide Suicide Prevention Council, which provides outreach and education, and the Alaska Division of Behavioral Health's Community-Based Suicide Prevention Program, which supports communities in promoting resilience and training Alaskans in basic prevention techniques."
• New York: Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation and announced a new statewide, multimedia campaign to help prevent suicide and promote mental health. The new legislation, the Student Lifeline Act, requires colleges across New York State to print information about the state's 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline on all student ID cards. Governor Hochul and the New York Office of Mental Health also launched a $5 million campaign to raise awareness of 988, which is free, confidential, impartial, and can be accessed any time of the day or night by phone, text or chat.
• Wisconsin: Governor Tony Evers proclaimed September 8 through September 14, 2024, Suicide Prevention Week. Governor Evers also proclaimed the entire month of September as Suicide Prevention Month in addition to highlighting Wisconsin's ongoing work and investments to help reduce suicide as the deaths by suicide in Wisconsin exceed 900 for second consecutive year. Governor Evers also focused his September 12 weekly radio address on suicide prevention.
• Wyoming: Governor Mark Gordon hosted the Wy We Care: Suicide Risk Reduction Community Forum. The forum served as an extension of Governor Gordon's Mental Health Initiative to advance Wyoming's systemic approach to mental health care reform. The forum aimed to serve as an opportunity for parents, teachers, first responders, mental health professionals, community service providers and citizens to learn best practices for building healthy communities and addressing strategies to prevent suicide.

To learn more about Suicide Prevention Month and other suicide prevention initiatives, visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services and 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline websites. For more information on how Governors can support suicide prevention, contact Marianne Gibson at [email protected].