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Mental Health & Substance Use

Overview

Introduction

How are Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Connected?

According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse, "many individuals who develop substance use disorders (SUD) are also diagnosed with mental disorders, and vice versa. Multiple national population surveys have found that about half of those who experience a mental illness during their lives will also experience a substance use disorder and vice versa."1

Why is the SUD crisis important to Delawareans?

By drug overdose death rates alone, the substance use disorder crisis continues to escalate. The rate of drug overdose deaths has increased from 6.7 per 100,000 to 48.4 per 100,000 in 2019, which is a seven-fold increase. Delaware has the second highest drug overdose death rate in the country with an age-adjusted drug overdose mortality rate of 48.4 per 100,000 in 2019. All three counties have rates higher than the national rate.

What is Delaware doing to address the crisis?

Delaware's monthly prescription rate of 33 per 1,000 persons in December 2019 was above the national average, but rates have been declining. Beginning with the launch of the Prescription Monitoring Program in 2012, Delaware has been working to address this crisis. Since then "Help is Here" was launched, community access to naloxone has been expanded, legislation to continue to support these efforts was passed, life-saving information has been distributed to the public through the OpiRescue App, and surveillance report data has been released to the public to further highlight the continued need for action.

Finding Support

Mental Heath Support

In a mental health crisis support is here.

For anonymous conversation: Text DE to 741741 for the Crisis Text Line. Call: 1-800-273-TALK (8255) to National Suicide Prevention Lifeline

For in-person evaluation: If under 18, call: 1-800-969-HELP (4357) If over 18, call: 1-800-652-2929 in New Castle 1-800-969-4357 in Kent/Sussex

Substance Use Disorder Support

Are you or a loved one looking for substance abuse treatment?

Delaware has resources available.

Key Data and Reports

Mental Health & Substance Use

Data are current as of 2024

Most recent dashboard update: 5/29/2024

Here, we highlight one key statistic from each topic. Click a table row to see more detailed data for the statistic. Or click on a link under "Topic Page" to view a statistic's corresponding topic page.

Table Key
Topic Page
Indicator

Delaware

% Change
Trendline
Adult Excessive Drinking

Adults who Engage in Binge Drinking

percentage of adults

12.9%

Decreased 30.6%(2012 - 2021)
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Drug Overdose Deaths

Other and Unspecified Narcotics

age-adjusted rate per 100,000 residents

1.8

Decreased 30.8%(2011 - 2021)
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Mental Health

Depression

percentage of adults

16.4%

Increased 10.8%(2012 - 2021)
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Prescription Monitoring Program

People who filled opioid and benzodiazepine prescriptions in the same month.

rate per 100 people

0.3

Decreased 70.0%(2012 - 2024)
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Suicide

Suicide

age-adjusted rate per 100,000 residents

13.5

Increased 20.5%(2011 - 2021)
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Suspected Non-fatal Drug Overdoses

Suspected Non-Fatal Drug Overdoses

age-adjusted rate per 10,000 people

2.7

Increased 3.8%(2016 - 2020)
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Tobacco Use

Adult Tobacco Use

percentage of adults

13.4%

Decreased 44.6%(2016 - 2021)
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Youth Substance Use

Prescription Pill Abuse

percentage of youth

8.0%

Decreased 36.5%(2015 - 2021)
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Youth Use of Prescription Pain Meds without Prescription

Youth Self-Reported Use of Prescription Pain Meds without Prescription

percentage of respondents

14%

Decreased 22.2%(2011 - 2018)
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Values marked with

indicate there is insufficient data to respect the privacy of citizens.

Investigative Stories

Insights from the 2014-2018 Delaware Suicide Surveillance Study

Mental Health & Substance Use Disorder

Insights from the 2014-2018 Delaware Suicide Surveillance StudyDate published: April 2022 Read the story
Delaware's Opioid Crisis

Mental Health & Substance Use Disorder

Delaware's Opioid CrisisDate published: January 2020 Read the story

Additional Information

Mental Health & Substance Use in Delaware

COVID-19 and Mental Health

What are the impacts of COVID-19 on mental health?

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on mental health throughout the United States. The CDC reported that US adults reported elevated levels of adverse mental health conditions, substance use, and suicidal ideation as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. 2

CDC analyses of high school students found that, in 2021, more than a third (37%) of high school students reported they experienced poor mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic, and 44% reported they persistently felt sad or hopeless during the past year.3

Data Sources

Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS)
View or download Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) dataset

Citation: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Survey Data. Atlanta, Georgia: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2013-2019

Delaware Prescription Monitoring Program
View or download Delaware Prescription Monitoring Program dataset

Citation: Delaware Division of Professional Regulation, Office of Controlled Substances. Prescription Monitoring Program. https://dpr.delaware.gov/boards/controlledsubstances/

Delaware School Survey
View or download Delaware School Survey dataset

Citation: University of Delaware, Center for Drug and Health Studies. Delaware School Survey. 2011-2018.

Emergency Department Data
View or download Emergency Department Data dataset

Citation: Delaware Department of Health and Social Services. https://myhealthycommunity.dhss.delaware.gov/

Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome
View or download Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome dataset

Citation: Delaware Health and Social Services, Office of Vital Statistics. 2011-2020. Delaware Vital Statistics Report.

Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS)
View or download Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) dataset

Citation: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Youth Risk Behavior Survey Data. 2019. Available at www.cdc.gov/yrbs.

Footnotes

  1. NIDA. “Part 1: The Connection Between Substance Use Disorders and Mental Illness.“ National Institute on Drug Abuse, 27 Sep. 2022, https://nida.nih.gov/publications/research-reports/common-comorbidities-substance-use-disorders/part-1-connection-between-substance-use-disorders-mental-illness Accessed 14 May 2024.
  2. Czeisler MÉ , Lane RI, Petrosky E, et al. Mental Health, Substance Use, and Suicidal Ideation During the COVID-19 Pandemic — United States, June 24-30, 2020. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2020;69:1049-1057. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6932a1.https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6932a1.htm Accessed 14 May 2024.
  3. New CDC data illuminate youth mental health threats during the COVID-19 pandemic. CDC. Published March 31, 2022.https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2022/p0331-youth-mental-health-covid-19.html. Accessed 14 May 2024

Privacy

In releasing this information, Delaware aims to provide information that can be helpful to local communities as they work to improve public health. However, the protection of the confidentiality of our citizens is of paramount importance. To that end, counts of less than 11 are not presented. An outside expert has reviewed the platform to ensure it complies with the HIPAA privacy rule (45 CFR 164.§514(b)).