In the first 11 months of 2020, 105 Vermonters died by suicide. That’s in line with recent years; on average, 106 people die by suicide in the first 11 months of the year in Vermont. (Data from December 2020 has yet to be released).
However, the number is higher now than a decade ago, and Vermont’s suicide rate is 34% higher than the U.S. average, advocates say. They contend the state has taken a hodge-podge approach to the problem and has not acted boldly enough.
Two bills in the Legislature this session seek to change that by boosting suicide prevention efforts and increasing access to suicide prevention services.
Lawmakers listened earlier this week as a panel, led by the Center for Health and Learning, outlined the importance of suicide prevention and pushed for the bills’ passage.
The first, H.213, would establish a suicide prevention coordinator position within the Department of Mental Health, require hospitals and designated agencies to offer suicide prevention services, and require a report on what health insurers provide coverage for in terms of suicide prevention counseling services.
The second bill, S.69, would appropriate funding for suicide prevention initiatives.
“While we do see a lot of creative and varied ideas in the state, there really is a need for a more unified and systematic leadership structure to help connect the dots on what is working and what appear to be promising practices,” said Steven Broer, director of behavioral health services at Northwest Counseling and Support Services.
Broer said research shows 45% of those who die by suicide had seen their primary care provider within 30 days before their death. He said it’s clear that physical and mental health needs to be integrated to ensure that kind of disconnect can’t happen.
Dr. Rebecca Bell, a critical care pediatrician at the UVM Medical Center, stressed the importance of firearms in the suicide prevention conversation. She said firearms are the most lethal means of suicide in Vermont and are more lethal than every other method combined.
She said the state could do more to encourage safe storage of firearms, and to make it easier for Vermonters to voluntarily and temporarily store their firearms offsite.
Rep. Alyssa Black, D-Essex, said she’s eager to hear more testimony on the bills. She has been lobbying for stronger gun laws since her son, Andrew, died by suicide in December 2018. The Legislature passed a bill she advocated for in 2019 mandating a 24-hour waiting period between handgun purchase and possession, but Gov. Phil Scott vetoed it.
“When you take one of the leading causes of death, and you move it out of the conversation of public health and move it into mental health, you’re pigeonholing the conversation,” Black said. “And you’re also adding to the stigma.”
In September, Vermont received a $3.8 million grant from the CDC to go toward these kinds of suicide prevention efforts. Black said she remembered Gov. Phil Scott addressing suicide prevention at his semiweekly press conferences after the grant was awarded but was saddened to see the conversation end there.
“I understand that it’s all Covid all the time, as it should be,” she said. “But I think if I wasn’t in the position I’m in, I wouldn’t see any [attention going toward suicide prevention] at all.”
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is a hotline for individuals in crisis or for those looking to help someone else. To speak with a certified listener, call 1-800-273-8255.
Correction: An earlier version of this story inaccurately described the fate of the proposed 24-hour handgun waiting period.
