Research Article
Association Between State Minimum Wages and Suicide Rates in the U.S.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2018.12.008Get rights and content

Introduction

The suicide rate in the U.S. has been increasing in recent years. Previous studies have consistently identified financial stress as a contributing factor in suicides. Nevertheless, there has been little research on the effect of economic policies that can alleviate financial stress on suicide rates. The purpose of this study is to determine whether increases in state minimum wages have been associated with changes in state suicide rates.

Methods

A retrospective panel data study was conducted. In 2018, linear regression models with state fixed effects were used to estimate the relationship between changes in state minimum wages and suicide rates for all 50U.S. states between 2006 and 2016. Models controlled for time-varying state characteristics that could be associated with changes in minimum wages and suicide rates.

Results

There were approximately 432,000 deaths by suicide in the study period. A one-dollar increase in the real minimum wage was associated on average with a 1.9% decrease in the annual state suicide rate in adjusted analyses. This negative association was most consistent in years since 2011. An annual decrease of 1.9% in the suicide rate during the study period would have resulted in roughly 8,000 fewer deaths by suicide. Analyses by race and sex did not reveal substantial variation in the association between minimum wages and suicides.

Conclusions

Increases in real minimum wages have been associated with slower growth in state suicide rates in recent years. Increasing the minimum wage could represent a strategy for addressing increases in suicide rates.

Section snippets

INTRODUCTION

The suicide rate in the U.S. has been steadily increasing in recent years.1, 2 The age-adjusted suicide rate in 2016 was 13.4 per 100,000 people, compared with 10.5 per 100,000 in 1999. Between 1999 and 2016, the suicide rate increased significantly in 44 states, with 25 states experiencing increases of more than 30%.1 The increases in suicides are contributing to reversals in decades-long trends of decreasing overall mortality rates.3 Though there has been particular attention paid to

Study Sample

The dependent variable in these analyses is the age-adjusted suicide rate obtained from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS) for all states from 2006 to 2016 reflecting underlying cause of death codes associated with intentional self-harm (X60–X84, Y87.0, and U03).5 The independent variable is the real, or inflation-adjusted, minimum wage, defined as the highest value of the state or federal minimum wage applicable in

RESULTS

There were approximately 432,000 suicide deaths in the study period. Figure1 presents the age-adjusted suicide rates from 2006 to 2016 by sex and race. Suicide rates increased among all groups, with men and non-Hispanic whites experiencing the largest absolute changes. The largest relative increases took place among women and non-Hispanic whites.

The mean real minimum wage for the study period was $8.00, with an SD of $0.74. The real minimum wage changed for all states in all years because of

DISCUSSION

A one-dollar increase in state minimum wage was associated on average with a 1.9% decrease in the annual age-adjusted suicide rate. Such a decrease in the suicide rate during the study period would have resulted in roughly 8,000 fewer suicide deaths. The estimated association was consistent across multiple model specifications and assumptions. The models controlled for economic conditions in states, state investments in health care, and improvements in health insurance coverage. As such, the

CONCLUSIONS

This study suggests that increasing the minimum wage could represent a strategy for addressing worsening trends in suicide rates. Despite the potential role of economic factors in contributing to suicide deaths, this is the first study the authors are aware of examining the effect of minimum wage changes on suicide rates. Additional studies of specific localities and making use of individual-level data may provide greater insight into the nature of the association between suicides and minimum

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

No financial disclosures were reported by the authors of this paper.

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