Minnesota has nearly the highest rates of major depression in the country, according to a new report from Blue Cross Blue Shield of America.
Report: Minnesota has one of the highest rates of depression in U.S.
May 14, 2018 at 8:35PM
The data examined medical claims from more than 41 million commercially insured Blue Cross Blue Shield members from 2013 to 2016 and compared depression rates among states, age groups and gender.
While Minnesota ranked near the top with a depression diagnosis rate of 5.8 percent, Hawaii showed the lowest rate at 2.1 percent.
Women living in Minnesota tied with Maine for having the highest depression diagnosis rate in the country, with a rate of 8.1 percent. Minnesota's millennials ranked second highest behind Utah, with a depression rate of 6.3 percent.
"Differences in the effort to screen for major depression can produce varying diagnoses rates for this condition across states," the report states.
Major depression is a health condition affecting more than 9 million commercially insured Americans.
"Diagnoses of major depression [nationwide] have risen dramatically by 33 percent since 2013," the report says. "This rate is rising even faster among millennials (up 47 percent) and adolescents (up 47 percent for boys and 65 percent for girls)."
Minnesota adolescents (ages 12-17) showed a depression rate of 3.9 percent, while the national average for that age group is 2.6 percent. Men in Minnesota were also above their national average of 2.8 percent, with a 3.7 percent depression diagnosis rate.
"It is possible that the increased rates of depression in adolescents are related to a combination of increased electronics use and sleep disruptions in already vulnerable individuals," said Dr. Karyn Horowitz, a psychiatrist at Emma Pendleton Bradley Hospital in Rhode Island. "Increased use of electronics, video games more commonly in boys and social media/texting more commonly in girls, can lead to increased conflict both within the home and with peers."
Weather also could be a factor for an increased risk of depression. Forty nine of the fifty states had rising rates of major depression from 2013 to 2016, with only Hawaii showing a slight decline.
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