Jewel Woods is the founder and clinical director of Male Behavioral Health and the Center For Men & Boys.
The place where we end up after death is not merely a location — it is a mirror. It reflects how we lived our lives and, more importantly, the circumstances surrounding our death. For many males, particularly white non-Hispanic males, that final place is the morgue.
I was reminded of this sobering truth during a tour of the Franklin County Coroner’s Office.
After the coroner, Nathaniel Overmire, described the types of cases his team investigates — sudden, traumatic, violent, unexpected or suspicious deaths, including homicides, suicides, accidents and drug-related fatalities — I asked a simple question: “What percentage of the bodies you investigate are male?”
There is a crisis of white men’s health
It turns out that in Franklin County, Ohio, over 70% of the deceased in critical categories are male: overdoses (71%), suicides (79%), homicides (79%) and motor vehicle fatalities (74%). This is not just a local issue — it’s a national one.
For example, between 1999 and 2022, approximately 70% of overdose deaths in the United States involved men.
During that same period, men accounted for 76% of all suicide deaths. Additionally, from 1998 to 2018, mortality due to alcoholic liver disease rose by 41%, disproportionately affecting middle-aged White non-Hispanic men without a college degree.
The fact that these statistics have not meaningfully deepened our understanding of men’s health outcomes speaks volumes about how the current discourse on the so-called “crisis of men’s health” has often been co-opted to serve the aims of grievance politics. Still, these social facts about men’s lives raise urgent questions about how men live, die and potentially suffer.
In examining this growing phenomenon, it’s hard to overstate the influence of Anne Case and Angus Deaton’s groundbreaking work on “deaths of despair.” Coined by the two Princeton economists — Case and Nobel Prize winner Deaton — the term captures two distinct yet deeply interconnected trends.
The plight of white men
The first is literal death, reflected in rising mortality rates among middle-aged white non-Hispanic men without a college degree, particularly those aged 45 to 54. These premature deaths are attributed to three behavioral causes: drug overdose, suicide and alcohol-related liver disease.
The second trend is the rise in despair itself, evidenced by increasing morbidity and worsening mental health indicators.
As the authors starkly put it, “Americans were drinking themselves to death, poisoning themselves with drugs, or shooting or hanging themselves.”
Between 2013 and 2019 alone, the age-adjusted alcohol-related mortality rate for White non-Hispanic men aged 25-74 without a bachelor’s degree rose by 41%; the suicide rate increased by 17%; and drug-related mortality surged by an alarming 73%.
We must help boys and men
Given the gravity of this health crisis, Male Behavioral Health, in collaboration with the Franklin County Coroner’s Office, will host the “Deaths of Despair” public policy symposium on May 23 in Columbus.
This pivotal event will address the pressing health and social challenges confronting men and boys in our state. Two of the most respected voices on the state of men and boys will speak: Richard Reeves, founder of the American Institute for Men & Boys and author of “Of Boys & Men,” and Tony Porter, founder of A Call to Men.
Across the country, both Republican- and Democrat-led states have begun developing targeted policies to support boys and men.
In Utah, Gov. Spencer Cox established a Task Force on the Wellbeing of Men and Boys to address economic stability, vocational opportunities and mental and physical health. In Michigan, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer issued an executive directive to close gender gaps in housing and higher education, specifically expanding access for young men.
And in Maryland, Gov. Wes Moore has made an unprecedented commitment to supporting men and boys, emphasizing mental health, education and workforce development.
The “deaths of despair” crisis demands a nuanced and bipartisan response — one that recognizes the intersection of race, gender, geography and class while rejecting simplistic narratives.
If we are serious about improving public health outcomes, we must include the specific experiences of boys and men in that conversation.
This symposium offers a different path — one grounded in empathy, data and collective accountability.
We invite community members, policy experts, educators and health professionals to join us. Together, we can ensure that Ohio leads the way in transforming pain into policy — and despair into hope.
Jewel Woods is the founder and clinical director of Male Behavioral Health and the Center For Men & Boys. Additional information on the “Deaths of Despair” public policy symposium can be found at deathsofdespair.com.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Drug overdose, suicide and liver disease. White men are in crisis. | Opinion
Reporting by Jewel Woods / The Columbus Dispatch
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
