On National Physician Suicide Awareness Day 2026, 71% of physicians say mental health stigma persists

Seventy-one percent of physicians say there is stigma surrounding mental health and seeking mental health care in their profession, and 36% say they, or a colleague they know, were afraid to seek that care because of mental health questions on licensing, credentialing or insurance applications.

The findings come from The Physicians Foundation’s 2026 Survey of America’s Physicians, released September 17, National Physician Suicide Awareness Day.

The online survey of 1,000 U.S. physicians, conducted with Medscape Aug. 4-14, also found 58% felt debilitating stress in the past year and 55% often have feelings of burnout. The share citing stigma is down from 80% in 2022, and the share citing application-related fear is down from 42% in 2023, though the foundation said physicians’ emotional distress was largely unchanged from 2025.

The Council of Residency Directors in Emergency Medicine (CORD) created the observance in 2018 to remember physicians who have died by suicide, according to CORD President-elect Arlene Chung, M.D.

On September 8, 2026, Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Michigan) introduced a House resolution supporting it, cosponsored by Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pennsylvania) and three Democrats.

Who is struggling most?

Sixty percent of respondents reported inappropriate feelings of anger, tearfulness or anxiety in the past year, and 48% said they had withdrawn or isolated themselves from family, friends and co-workers.

Nine percent reported thoughts or actions of self-harm, which the foundation said is on par with its 2022 through 2025 results.

Employed physicians reported debilitating stress more often than independent physicians, 62% compared with 50%, and female physicians more often than male physicians, 62% compared with 56%.

Physicians 45 or younger reported inappropriate anger, tearfulness or anxiety more often than older physicians, 69% compared with 53%.

Among the 736 respondents experiencing anxiety, hopelessness or emotional distress, 61% named excessive workload, staffing shortages or too little time with patients as one of up to three top contributors. Administrative burden, including prior authorization and documentation, followed at 42%.

How much control do physicians have over their work?

Seventy-four percent of physicians said they have a great deal of or complete control over clinical decisions about patient care. That share falls to 37% for time spent with patients, 31% for the number of patients they’re expected to see and 24% for administrative tasks and documentation.

Independent physicians were more than twice as likely as employed physicians to report that level of control over patient volume, 49% compared with 23%. Among those reporting distress, employed physicians were more likely to cite organizational policies, productivity expectations or internal pressures that limit clinical autonomy, 34% compared with 13%.

Independent physicians more often cited financial pressure on their practice, pay or job stability, 37% compared with 16%.

Well-being concerns led 38% of physicians to decline, or consider declining, additional responsibilities or leadership roles in the past 12 months. Twenty-six percent said the same about reducing clinical hours, 24% about retiring earlier than planned and 18% about leaving clinical practice.

Nearly a quarter, 24%, made no changes and continue working despite significant distress.

Is burnout the same as suicide risk?

In a University of California San Diego study of more than 2,000 health workers, only participants who met screening criteria for depression, with or without burnout, were at greater risk for suicidal ideation.

Christine Yu Moutier, M.D., a psychiatrist and chief medical officer of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP), described the findings in a 2025 interview with Medical Economics. Moutier was involved in the study.

“When burnout is more normalized and acceptable to talk about, then we might miss the opportunity to actually have treatment that could make a huge difference for the person’s life, and actually could be lifesaving,” she said.

Daniel Saddawi-Konefka, M.D., MBA, who directs the anesthesiology residency at Massachusetts General Hospital, said burnout requires organizational and systemic solutions, while mental health conditions call for individual treatment such as psychotherapy and, at times, medication.

If all distress gets labeled burnout, “then we have physicians who are forgoing or delaying really critical therapies that could not only help prevent suicide, but dramatically improve their quality of life,” he said. The two co-wrote a 2025 JAMA paper on reducing barriers to mental health care for physicians.

A 2024 meta-analysis in The BMJ covered 39 studies from 20 countries. It found no overall increase in suicide risk for male physicians compared with the general population, while female physicians’ risk was 76% higher. Rates declined over time for both, and female physicians’ rate was 24% higher in the 10 most recent studies.

A 2025 JAMA Psychiatry study examined 448 physician suicides from 2017 to 2021 in 30 states and the District of Columbia. Female physicians’ risk was 53% higher than other women’s, and male physicians’ risk was 16% lower than other men’s.

Thirty-four percent of Physicians Foundation respondents know a physician who has died by suicide, and 45% know one who has considered, attempted or died by suicide, down from 53% in 2024.

Why do licensing and credentialing questions still matter?

The Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes’ Foundation is named for Lorna Breen, M.D., a New York City emergency physician who died by suicide in 2020, early in the COVID-19 pandemic. Her family and friends have said she worried she could lose her medical license if her mental health problems became known.

As of May 15, the foundation-led ALL IN: Wellbeing First for Healthcare coalition had verified that 44 medical licensure boards and 30 dental, nursing, pharmacy and specialty boards keep intrusive, stigmatizing mental health and substance use questions off their applications, as do 3,392 hospitals and other care facilities.

“This process is important because it helps health care workers make confident decisions to seek care for mental health conditions when they need that care without a concern that the act of getting help is going to jeopardize their ability to care for patients,” Stefanie Simmons, M.D., FACEP, the foundation’s chief medical officer, said in a 2025 interview on Medical Economics’ “Off the Chart” podcast.

Hospitals that make the changes also revise peer reference forms, Simmons said. “We don’t want to be asking our peer references about any history of depression or anxiety or mental health conditions, because those are the very peers that we need to be able to go to to talk about our hardest times,” she said.

Licensing questions “should either not be there at all,” Moutier said, or should “center around impairment related to any health cause” rather than singling out mental health.

Saddawi-Konefka called changing the applications a critical first step. Even if every application were fixed, he said, physicians would still face stigma, a culture of stoicism, logistical barriers and worries about jobs and residency spots.

“It’s a badge of honor to work through illness,” he said of medicine’s culture.

In California, Assembly Bill 2164, sponsored by the California Medical Association (CMA) and signed in 2024, bars the Medical Board of California and the Osteopathic Medical Board of California from asking invasive licensing application questions that stigmatize physicians for seeking mental health care.

In a September 17 statement, the CMA said receiving appropriate mental health care should “never be treated as evidence that a physician is unable to practice medicine safely.”

What is Congress doing?

The Stevens resolution, H.Res. 1519, supports the goals of National Physician Suicide Awareness Day and recognizes the need for more research into physician suicide, including barriers to treatment. It also encourages the president to issue a proclamation calling on Americans to observe the day and was referred to the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

Endorsers include the American Medical Association (AMA), the American Hospital Association, AFSP and the Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes’ Foundation.

The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026, reauthorized the Dr. Lorna Breen Health Care Provider Protection Act through September 2030, according to the AMA. As reauthorized, the 2022 law requires annual stigma-reduction campaigns and broadens grant eligibility to address administrative burdens.

The AMA said it is working with the foundation and lawmakers to fully fund the programs.

What can physicians do now?

The Medical Society of the State of New York listed seven actions to reduce burnout and prevent mental health emergencies: learn the vital signs, encourage mental health reflection, share suicide prevention resources, prepare before a moment in crisis, check in with a physician, remove intrusive mental health questions and create a culture of well-being.

Thirty percent of physicians in the new survey said they had checked in with a physician they suspected was experiencing mental health distress, down from 35% in 2023. Thirty-two percent agreed that suicide prevention resources for physicians exist and are easy to access.

Current Wellbeing First Champions are listed on the foundation’s site. The coalition also explains there how organizations can get free resources and technical assistance to audit and revise their applications.

Moutier pointed to anonymous screening tools such as AFSP’s Interactive Screening Program. Saddawi-Konefka favors opt-out programs that make therapy a default part of training or practice, which he likened to a routine colonoscopy at 45.

He said such programs are among the more expensive options and suggested starting with higher-risk groups such as trainees.

“I think the next stage that really needs to happen is a communication strategy so that physicians who are in various hospitals and states understand what their conditions are,” Moutier said.

Self-prescribing and informal curbside consultations among physicians happen in part because of fear that treatment will be probed, she said.

If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Physicians and medical students can also call the Physician Support Line at 1-888-409-0141 for free, confidential support from volunteer psychiatrists.