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Monday, Sep. 8, 2025

Are suicide rates twice as high in rural Minnesota than in the Twin Cities?

Brian Arola, MinnPost
yes

Data from the Minnesota Department of Health shows that Minnesota counties that are entirely rural had 23.4 suicides per 100,000 residents in 2024, compared with 11.5 in the Twin Cities region.  

A lack of access to mental health care and more access to firearms are among the factors contributing to the higher rates, according to the agency.

According to a 2023 report by the Center for Rural Policy and Development, the state’s least-populated counties had one mental health professional for every 741 residents. The most densely populated counties, meanwhile, had one for every 197 residents, the report said.

The center found that rural areas had the highest percentage of fatalities in which firearms were used. Rural suicide rates were more than halved when guns were taken out of the equation in the report.

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