NJ is second least-depressed state, study finds

New Jersey is the second least-depressed state in the country coming in one place behind Hawaii and one rank above California, according to a new study.

Over the last five years, New Jersey has the second-lowest average rate of depression at 12.98 percent, according to a new report from QuoteWizard by LendingTree. From 2014 to 2018, New Jersey’s depression rate has decreased by 11.94 percent, which is the fifth biggest decrease of depression rates in the nation.

There are 17.3 million Americans suffering from depression and even more with seasonal affective disorder. QuoteWizard analyzed these rates to see which states have the biggest increase or decrease of depression, the highest and lowest average depression rate, as well as access to mental health care.

"It's difficult to pin down factors that lead to overall depression rates. New Jersey's second lowest rate of depression in the country is an interesting case," said Adam Johnson, an analyst at QuoteWizard. "The trends commonly saw in the data was a correlation in access to mental healthcare and the percentage change in depression rates from 2014 to 2018."

The study found:

New Jersey was also ranked 32nd for access to mental health care in the nation.

Oregon, West Virginia and Maine have the highest average rate of depression.

California, New Jersey and Hawaii have the lowest average rate of depression.

Alaska, Louisiana and Tennessee saw the largest increase in depression.

New Mexico, Massachusetts and Connecticut saw the largest decrease in depression.

Johnson said that a state like Massachusetts followed the common thread by having second best access to mental healthcare and seeing a 16 percent decrease in depression rates.

"New Jersey presents an interesting position that didn't follow the trends we commonly saw in the data," he said. "An 11 percent decrease in depression rates with a fairly poor access rating goes against the trends we saw in other states. Again, seeing this trend in New Jersey makes it difficult to pin down a cause for the overall low rate of depression."

Access to mental health care through insurance is a significant barrier for people with depression and mental illness, QuoteWizard, which is based in Seattle, said in its report.

For its methodology, QuoteWizard analyzed Center for Disease Control (CDC) data to find the prevalence of depression in each state and then analyzed depression rates in each state over a period from 2014 to 2018 to find a five-year average in each state, according to the report.

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Rankings one to 50 are based on the five-year average of depression rates. Prevalence of depression rates in each state are determined by people who have indicated a diagnosis of a form of depression, the report said. Also included is the percentage change in depression rates from 2014 to 2018 to show to increase and decrease of depression rates in each state.

Access to mental healthcare rankings was provided by Mental Health America to show direct correlation of how access to mental healthcare impacts the increase or decrease of depression rates, according to the report.

You can find the full report here bit.ly/37CpECj or at quotewizard.com.

Staff Writer Nick Muscavage is an award-winning watchdog reporter whose work spans many topics and has spurred the creation of a state law. Contact him: 908-243-6615; ngmuscavage@gannettnj.com; @nmuscavage.