MaineHealth is creating a seamless system of behavioral health care across Maine, coordinating hospital psychiatric care with community-based treatment services, and improving access to medical care through integration with primary care services.
Why does MaineHealth focus on behavioral health?
- In the past 10 years, the age-adjusted rate of drug overdose deaths in the MaineHealth Service Area has almost tripled.
- Maine's recent surge in overdose deaths continued in 2020 with 504 lives lost, a 33% increase from 380 in 2019.
- Between 2010 and 2020, the rate of suicide among people in Maine significantly increased.
- One in five people in Maine have been told by a provider that they have a form of depression.
Taking Action
MaineHealth supports a variety of clinical, community and policy actions to help decrease suicide and substance use throughout the MaineHealth service area. Here are some of the ways MaineHealth and our partners are responding:
Tracking Progress
Over the past 20 years, the age-adjusted rate of suicide has increased more quickly in Maine and the MaineHealth service area than in the U.S. overall. Suicide was the 9th leading cause of death among people living in Maine in 2021.
Growth in drug overdose deaths are driven by a large increase among males ages 25 – 44. Suicide rates appear to be increasing at a slower rate than drug overdose deaths across gender and age groups.
