CDC Retracts its Suicide Stats for Farmers

Posted by Carol Miller|July 3, 2018

Statistics recently released by the Centers for Disease Control about the rate of farmers likely to die by suicide are alarming. Upon further review, the government agency is making moves to clarify its report.

In June, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) issued a sobering report on suicides increasing across the country, but especially in in rural areas. One part of the report broke down suicide rates by occupation, and initially it showed that farmers were more likely than any other occupation to commit suicide.

Last week, the CDC retracted that portion of the study. Researchers tagged some professions, including farming, with the incorrect code, which makes the results unreliable. The CDC is working on a more accurate report on how suicide rates and occupations interact.

Although the CDC is retracting the occupation portion of the study, its statistics on suicide rates increasing over all stand. Between 1999 and 2016, suicides rose in every state save Nevada by at least 6%. In 12 states, suicide increased 38% to 58%. Suicide rates rose more than 20% in 32 states.

When the CDC first released the report, a number of news outlets published articles delving into why farming may lead to suicide. Those reports shed a light on some of the industry’s biggest struggles, including crop prices, unpredictable weather, labor shortages, and so on.