AUGUSTA – Insisting Maine’s above-average suicide rate can be ignored no longer, a freshman Orono legislator is proposing the creation of a working group to find ways to reduce the state’s high number of self-inflicted deaths.

Sen. Elizabeth Schneider, D-Orono, said that while the state’s No. 1 ranking for suicides in the age 15-24 category are well-documented, Maine also has a serious problem among older adults. According to state statistics for 2003, of the 137 documented suicides that year, 73 were between the ages of 35 and 64, and 28 were 65 or older.

Speaking to members of the Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee, Cheryl DiCara said the state was well aware of Schneider’s concerns. As the state coordinator for the Maine Bureau of Health’s Youth Suicide Prevention Program, DiCara knows suicide is a significant public health problem for the state that can be measured “across the life span.”

Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death among state residents, DiCara said, producing an average of 170 fatalities annually over the last decade. In 2002, DiCara said, the most recent year available for national comparative data, Maine ranked 20th in the nation for suicide deaths with 166 fatalities.

“More Maine people die by suicide than by homicide,” DiCara said. “For every homicide, there are more than eight suicides. Adult suicide rates are higher than youth suicide rates, and every suicide takes a tremendous toll on family members, friends and entire communities.”

Schneider’s bill, LD 1208, would establish an 11-member legislative working group that, in addition to lawmakers, would include representatives from suicide prevention groups, a guidance counselor, a medical worker with drug expertise, a suicide counselor, and representatives from the Maine Attorney General’s Office and the commissioner of Health and Human Services Department.

The panel would be charged with reporting back to the Legislature by Dec. 7 with recommendations and legislation establishing:

. A statewide preventive mentoring program to help troubled individuals.

. A statewide communications program on suicide.

. A media plan and annual statewide suicide conference.

Schneider said most elderly suicide victims are diagnosed with depression disorders a few weeks before the deaths, adding that, in many instances, one person could have made a difference between life and death.

“Our friends and people that you know could have had their lives saved with a little bit of intervention or a buddy system,” she said. “I really, truly believe that we must do something on this issue.”

Schnieder’s legislation was backed by several individuals and organizations including the Maine Primary Care Association and the Advocacy Initiative Network of Maine. Kaitlyn Bragdon-Roe, a spokesperson for the network, said the time had arrived for the state to act on the shared tragedy of suicide.

“I feel strongly that we have a responsibility to everyone residing here to understand this most unfortunate trend,” Bragdon-Roe said.

In describing the state health bureau’s position on the bill, DiCara said her agency was neither for nor against the measure. DiCara said the state already has a program in place to reduce Maine’s rate of youth suicide and suggested it would be “duplicative” to have another group established to address the same issue. On the other hand, DiCara acknowledged there is no existing group focused on suicide prevention across the life span, adding that DHHS staff would be willing to participate in the legislative mission, should one be authorized.

The committee has scheduled a work session for LD 1208 for 9 a.m. Monday.