If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. If someone is in immediate danger, call 911.
Jennifer Eckhart, a former Fox Business associate producer who became publicly known for her 2020 lawsuit accusing former Fox News anchor Ed Henry of sexual assault, died by suicide on Sept. 19 at her home in Hobe Sound, Florida. She was 36. Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek said at a Sept. 21 briefing that she had left a seven-week stay at a mental health facility one week earlier.
That timing reflects a pattern researchers have documented for decades: the weeks after someone leaves inpatient psychiatric care are among the highest-risk periods for suicide. For families bringing a loved one home from a psychiatric hospital, Eckhart's death raises practical questions about that first week.
Henry denied her allegations. The two settled her lawsuit in June 2025.
Sheriff Describes Repeated Crisis Evaluations
Budensiek said authorities in Martin and Palm Beach counties had taken Eckhart for involuntary mental health evaluations six times in the previous 18 months under Florida's Baker Act, according to TCPalm's report on the briefing. The law allows a person in a severe mental health crisis to be held for evaluation for up to 72 hours.
The sheriff said her family described her as "falling apart" and had done a great deal to try to help her. The sheriff's office and the medical examiner ruled her death a suicide. Toxicology results are still pending, and the investigation remains open.
Suicide rarely has a single cause, and nothing in the public record explains why Eckhart died.
When she settled with Henry, Eckhart told People, "With this settlement in place, a weight has now been lifted from my shoulders, and my passion to support fellow trauma survivors has been renewed."
The First Weeks After Discharge Carry Elevated Risk
A 2017 JAMA Psychiatry meta-analysis covering 50 years of research found that the suicide rate in the first three months after psychiatric discharge was about 100 times the global rate, Psychiatric News reported. A 2025 meta-analysis of post-discharge risk factors describes rates as extraordinarily high in the first week, then declining steeply over time.
In an editorial accompanying the 2017 study, Dr. Mark Olfson of Columbia University wrote, "Only about half of psychiatric inpatients receive any outpatient care during the first week after hospital discharge, and only about two-thirds receive any outpatient mental health care during the first month." He also pointed to a U.K. study in which a policy of follow-up within seven days was associated with fewer suicides after discharge.
Later research points in the same direction. A 2023 JAMA Network Open study of more than 76,000 patients in South Korea found that an outpatient visit within seven days of discharge was associated with lower suicide risk than no follow-up within a month.
These findings describe groups of patients, not individuals. They show associations, not proof that any single step prevents a death.
Nationally, CDC data show 48,824 suicide deaths in 2024, and an estimated 14.3 million adults seriously thought about suicide that year.
Steps Families Can Take When a Loved One Comes Home
Families cannot control every outcome, and no one should read Eckhart's death as a failure by the people who tried to help her. Still, the transition home is a period when concrete steps can help.
Before discharge, families can ask for a follow-up appointment within seven days, a written safety plan, and clear instructions for each medication. At home, securing medications and reducing access to items that could be used for self-harm can lower risk during a crisis.
Warning signs worth taking seriously include talking about wanting to die or being a burden, withdrawing from people, giving away belongings, sudden agitation, or an unexpected calm after a period of distress. Anyone worried about a loved one can call or text 988, which is free and available 24 hours a day. If someone is in immediate danger, call 911.
Cost can be a barrier. Community mental health centers often accept Medicaid and offer sliding-scale fees, and families can ask the hospital for a bridge appointment if outpatient waits are long.
The sheriff's office has not described what follow-up care Eckhart had arranged, and it is not clear whether any review of her care will be made public. The broader lesson is one researchers have stressed for years: extra contact, a scheduled appointment, and a family that knows what to watch for can matter most in the weeks after inpatient care.
Key Questions Answered
What happened to Jennifer Eckhart? The Martin County Sheriff's Office and the medical examiner ruled that Eckhart, 36, died by suicide at her Florida home on Sept. 19. Toxicology results are pending.
Why is the time after psychiatric discharge considered risky? Studies spanning decades show suicide rates are much higher in the first weeks and months after leaving inpatient care, especially in the first week.
What is Florida's Baker Act? A state law that allows involuntary evaluation for up to 72 hours during a severe mental health crisis.
What warning signs should families watch for? Talk of wanting to die, withdrawal, giving away belongings, agitation, or sudden calm after distress.
What can families ask for before a loved one leaves the hospital? A follow-up appointment within seven days, a written safety plan, and clear medication instructions.
Where can people get help right now? Call or text 988 for the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Call 911 if someone is in immediate danger.
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