Research Examines Deaths Of Despair In Montana
Research into nearly 200,000 Montana death records from the last two decades has put hard numbers to anecdotes about suicides and drug- and alcohol-related deaths during the pandemic.
The report, by University of Montana School of Journalism Professor Lee Banville, is published on the American Communities Project’s website and shows that death rates significantly increased in 2020 in communities categorized as Graying America, Native American Lands and Working Class Country.
Banville spoke with MTPR’s Freddy Monares about what he found.
Freddy Monares Your report analyzed 197,000 death reports obtained from Montana s Department of Public Health and Human Services from 2000 through the end of 2020. This gave you historical context when looking at so-called deaths of despair during the pandemic. First off, what are deaths of despair and why are they called that?