CONCORD, N.H. — New Hampshire's suicide-prevention programs report more people are coming forward to share stories about measures that helped save their lives.

One such group is Headrest, a suicide-prevention hotline that began in 1971. Executive director Cameron Ford said the 24-hour crisis hotline serves New Hampshire, Vermont and parts of Maine.

He said he finds most data about the nationwide increase in suicide deaths very discouraging, but said personal testimonials from those who have received help shows suicide-prevention programs do work.

"So much about suicide is an impulsive behavior,” Ford said. “People who are survivors of attempted suicide, 100% of them say once they pulled the trigger or once whatever they did, they immediately regretted it."

In August, New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu signed a bill aimed at combatting suicide in the state, including expanding prevention education in schools. The legislation approved more funding for the suicide-prevention hotline and other strategies to address suicide as a public-health issue.

A 2018 Centers for Disease Control report showed suicide rates rose nearly 50% in New Hampshire over a 17-year period.

Ford said stories are more than anecdotal, including one from a man who was once making 150 hotline calls per month to keep suicide thoughts at bay. Four years later, he had conquered his mental-health issues and had a permanent home and a job. Ford said the hotline is operated 24 hours per day, 365 days a year by professionals who offer a variety of services.

"We get about 1,000 calls a month altogether, and about 250 of those calls are calls regarding someone who wants to quit using substances,” he said. “So we help them get that help.”

NAMI New Hampshire adopted a "Zero Suicide" goal after a government report showed suicide rates increased in nearly all states from 1999 to 2016. Spokesperson Patrick Roberts said the 2018 annual report highlights successes and what needs more attention.

"We are a fairly rural state. So that's one of the biggest challenges in the state is just how do you get the resources where the vast majority of them are potentially a few hours away,” Roberts said. “And that seems to be a common issue in other states that are either large and rural or just a little more spread out."

The Headrest hotline number is 603-448-4400, and the national suicide-prevention lifeline is 800-273-TALK.

Virginia is bolstering mental health care during and beyond Mental Health Month.

Since the pandemic, the need for behavioral health services has grown considerably, especially among young people. Social media and pandemic-era isolation contributed to an ongoing youth mental health crisis.

Bruce Cruser, executive director of Mental Health Virginia, said a spillover effect of the pandemic is the reduced stigma around mental health.

"You have more people willing to talk about their mental illness or the fact that they're not feeling well," Cruser observed. "It's good that more people are open about it and more people are asking for help when they need it. I mean, that's a good thing. The bad thing is that there's so much need."

The state has made progress in funding mental health services. Virginia's new budget provides an almost $2.5 million increase in children's mental health funding to $15 million for 2025 and 2026, but many other funding pots have been reduced, redirected or eliminated.

While the state is broadening the services provided, barriers to accessing them remain. Beyond existing stigma in certain communities, Cruser pointed out there are many reasons people are unable to get the help they need.

"For some people it's cost, because they still might not have insurance or know about available insurance options," Cruser acknowledged. "But even with insurance, there can be high copays, etc. But another one is availability of the service."

The federal Health Resources and Services Administration designated all of Virginia under a mental health professional shortage. Other reports show the state has few areas where youth behavioral health services are close to sufficient.

Georgia is taking on its mental-health care challenges head-on through new legislation.

One bill is aimed at increasing the number of providers in the state. Senate Bill 480 offers loan repayment assistance to mental-health care professionals who choose to work in underserved areas.

Rep. Sharon Cooper, R-Marietta, highlighted the state's access landscape, noting that of its 18 public health districts, 12 are located in rural areas. She said the goal is to ensure equitable access to mental-health services for all.

"Georgia is terribly short of psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, marriage and family providers, all levels of people that deal with various aspects of mental illness," said Cooper.

According to the Rural Information hub, most of Georgia struggles with having enough mental-health providers. The data shows out of 159 counties, only six have no shortage, and two only have shortages in parts of the county.

Cooper elaborated on the multifaceted challenges Georgia faces in mental-health care, citing historical underinvestment and rapid population growth as contributing factors to the current shortage. She described the evolution of mental-health care policy in Georgia, including previous legislative efforts to promote parity between mental and physical health care.

"We are trying to make up for mistakes of the past and trying to do what's right for mentally ill people and to put their illness on parity with anybody that would have a gallbladder or heart disease," Cooper added.

Cooper pointed out that in this past legislative session, 19 bills were signed to help increase the state's ability to care for mental- and behavioral-health needs. Other legislation includes SB 373, which helps provide expedited licenses to marriage and family therapists.


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New York's 2025 budget improves access to mental-health services.

Budget legislation stipulates commercial insurers have to pay rates similar to Medicaid for in- and-out-of-network behavioral health services.

While many New York adults can access care, younger people can't because of insurance coverage.

Matthew Shapiro - senior director of government affairs for the National Alliance on Mental Illness-New York State - said people are glad this broadens access to often limited mental health services.

"We hear from people all the time that they can't access care, they can't find a psychiatrist, they can't find a social worker, they can't find someone who'll prescribe medication," said Shapiro. "It can be very, very difficult, especially in parts of Upstate New York where these services just aren't readily available."

Some insurance companies pushed back, saying it would raise customers' rates. Shapiro noted that this will hopefully resolve long-standing issues in obtaining mental-health care.

A state Attorney General's office report finds 86% of the listed, in-network mental-health providers were either unreachable, not in-network, or not accepting new patients.

The budget allocates millions of dollars to other programs that establish new inpatient psychiatric beds statewide, and increase mental health support for first responders.

But, Shapiro noted that other insurance companies' barriers prevent New Yorkers from getting the best mental-health care they can.

"It's so important those people get the medications their doctor believes are best for them, and their individual set of symptoms as quickly as possible," said Shapiro. "So, eliminating things like fail-first procedures and what they call step-up procedures."

He added that these policies can significantly set back a person's recovery.

A 2024 survey finds 1 in 5 adults required to fail first had to visit the emergency room or be admitted to a hospital as a result of the policy.




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