'A significant blow to the county': Data shows Yuba County had ninth highest suicide rates in California

Michaela Harris, Appeal-Democrat, Marysville, Calif.
Updated ·4 min read

Apr. 14—Based on data from the California Department of Public Health regarding suicide and self harm statistics between 2018 and 2020, Yuba County is ranked at number nine for the highest rates of suicide across the state.

According to this data, the overall rate for suicide in California is 10.5% per 100,000 people or approximately 13,000 within this timeframe. Shasta County currently claims the highest rates at nearly 25% while Yuba County sits at 20.5% with a total of 46 suicide deaths at the time this data was collected. In comparison, Sutter County's suicide rate is 9.9% or 30 deaths by suicide.

The data provided by the Department of Public Health is nearly three years old, but the total number of suicides listed has been updated as of June 2022. Deputy Director of Yuba County Health and Human Services Tony Gordon said that collecting information regarding suicide deaths can take significant time because it can take months for a death to be confirmed as a suicide.

"Basically, under typical circumstances, it takes sometimes several months for actually a death to be confirmed as a suicide. The entities that complete the death certificate determine the cause of death. The coroner or the medical examiners may also be currently experiencing backlogs. That's sometimes why delays of termination take place to get that information in the database with California Department of Public Health," Gordon said.

According to Health and Human Services officials, there is minimal data available that breaks down which demographics are most affected by suicide in Yuba County due to the total number of deaths.

"We don't disaggregate by demographics because of the small suicide count that's less than 11 (per 100,000). Basically, any data with suicide counts less than 11 cannot be provided publically. Therefore, we don't provide more current data other than what's reported in (the Department of Public Health's) table," Gordon said.

Sutter County Public Information Officer Chuck Smith further explained that the department is prohibited by federal law from providing identifying information about persons with medical conditions in this regard.

"If there are only a handful of cases, any information, including the sex of the individual, is restricted by law," Smith said in an email.

However, demographics are available through the Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Committee for suicide deaths between 2010 and 2019. This resource lists Yuba County as having around 17 suicide deaths per 100,000 people during this time frame and Sutter County with around 14 deaths.

According to the committee, in California and nationally, white men over 25 are most likely to die by suicide compared to other demographic groups. However, between 2010 and 2019, the suicide rate had the highest increase for Latinos at 35.6% followed by African Americans at 31.1%.

Yuba and Sutter counties reflect these statewide statistics with white men between the ages of 25 and 44 accounting for the most suicide deaths.

Northern California counties have the highest rates of death by suicide, according to statistics, while Southern California counties have the highest numbers of suicides.

"We take every death as a significant blow to the county," Gordon said.

Sutter-Yuba Behavioral Health is contracted with the California Department of Health Care Services as the Medi-Cal provider for behavioral health services in both counties to provide treatment and prevention services equally in both counties, Director Rick Bingham said in an email. Sutter-Yuba Behavioral Health is also the only bi-county behavioral health administration in California, Gordon said.

According to Bingham, the large gaps in suicide rates between Yuba and Sutter counties is attributed to the population difference.

"49% of the clients we see are residents of Yuba County, while 51% are residents of Sutter County. Because Yuba County has a lower population, we see slightly more clients in that county per capita. Thus, as far as services provided, we see no reason for the difference in suicide rates between the two counties," Bingham said.

If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, call 988 to reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, text TALK to 741741 or visit the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline website at www.988lifeline.org.