Texas, which had more in-person education from 2020 to 2022, had lower rates of emergency department youth suicidality visits than Massachusetts.

Longer COVID school closures were associated with more emergency department youth suicidality visits, a research letter found.

The report, published on JAMA Network Open on Nov. 10, was led by researchers from the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School.
“This cohort study found an association between longer school closures in the public health response to the COVID-19 pandemic and increases in youth suicidality,” the authors wrote, adding that further investigation is needed so that “policy regarding school closures may better align with the mental health needs of youth.”