The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration released the results of its survey conducted every year, a national snapshot based on self-reported responses from nearly 70,000 people. During the past year, 25.5 percent of people 12 and older said that they’d used an illicit drug. Meanwhile, those who said they participated in binge drinking dropped slightly from 21.7 percent in 2021 to 20.1 percent in 2024. Along with use of both legal and illicit substance use, SAMHSA’s report tracks nine indicators of mental health, including anxiety, depression, mental illness, and suicidal thoughts, plans, and attempts. Last year, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that, between 2000 – 2020, suicide rates almost doubled in rural areas.
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