A new report by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration has found that in 2015, 9.8 million American adults had seriously contemplated suicide over the previous year.

A new report on suicidal thoughts and behaviors reveals just how pervasive these problems are in the U.S. 
According to the report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, or SAMHSA, “In 2015, 9.8 million adults aged 18 or older thought seriously about trying to kill themselves in the past 12 months, including 2.7 million who made suicide plans and 1.4 million who made a nonfatal suicide attempt.” 
The group most affected across all categories in 2015 was that of young adults aged 18 to 25; in fact, suicidal thoughts among them went up from 7.5 percent in 2014 to 8.3 percent in 2015.
Meanwhile, the report points out that suicide attempts among females in this young adult age group increased significantly “from 1.5 percent in 2014 to 2.0 percent in 2015.” 
It goes on to state that lifestyle factors contributing to higher rates of serious suicidal thoughts among all adults in 2015 included, in part, “past year alcohol users, past month binge and heavy alcohol use drinkers, and past year illicit drug users…” 
SAMHSA officials have said that they are trying to spread awareness about the issue of suicide and that it is preventable with assistance.