Ann Arbor Times

The number of children in Michigan who have lost a parent to overdose, suicide, homicide, or other substance-related causes has increased significantly since 2000. According to a new study from the University of Michigan, these types of deaths now account for two out of every five parental deaths in the state.

Sean Esteban McCabe, professor at the U-M School of Nursing and lead author of the study published in JAMA Network Open, noted that Michigan's parental mortality rates are higher than the national average. The research team aimed to better understand where these deaths are occurring in order to provide targeted bereavement services for affected children.

“Parental deaths from overdoses, homicides, suicides, and other substance-related causes are associated with more adverse health outcomes and higher rates of early mortality in their children, so more attention is needed in this area, because no child should ever have to grieve alone,” said McCabe, who also directs U-M’s Center for the Study of Drugs, Alcohol, Smoking and Health.

The researchers worked with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, the Community Foundation of Southeast Michigan and HopeHQ—a group focused on children grieving parental overdose deaths—to examine trends at both state and county levels. They linked death certificates from 2000 to 2023 with birth certificates from 1989 to 2023 to identify biological children aged 17 or younger who had experienced a parental death.

McCabe pointed out that despite some recent declines in fatal drug overdoses overall, the number of children experiencing a parent's death due to overdose continues to grow both in Michigan and across the country. This is attributed to a sharp rise in fatal drug overdoses over the past decade.

Counties with high levels of parental deaths due to these causes are not limited to one region but are distributed throughout Michigan. Counties such as Marquette, Luce, Alger, Dicknson, Baraga, Menominee, Charlevoix, Manistee, St. Clair, Monroe, Calhoun and Crawford were among those most affected.

“Taken together, these findings offer key metrics to make sure that there are adequate bereavement services to meet the increased needs at the county and state levels,” McCabe said. “We are fortunate to live in a state that prioritizes public health and is willing to make data-driven decisions to make sure no child or family grieves alone.”

McCabe added that by focusing only on biological parents—and not including step-parents or other caregivers—the study likely underestimates how many children have been affected by parental loss statewide.

“It’s a great first step and more work is clearly needed,” McCabe said.

Co-authors on this research include Luisa Kcomt (Wayne State University), Rececca Evans-Polce (U-M School of Nursing), Samuel Tennant (U-M School of Public Health), Eric Hulsey (Institute for Research, Education and Training in Addictions), and Vita McCabe (Michigan Medicine).