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I know you're asking a rhetorical question, but the answer to your question is: none (and in some places like Victoria, suicides were down compared to 2019).

https://www.perthnow.com.au/news/health/distress-levels-up-d...

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U.S. drug overdose deaths rise 30% to record during pandemic

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-drug-overdose-deaths-ris...

How does that apply to Australia?

Why do think Australia is exception when it comes to mental health?

US drug overdose deaths were such a huge outlier before COVID, that people were talking of an opiate pandemic. As usual it's America that's the exception.

A statement about US drug deaths says nothing about what happened in Australia.

Sure, but that's a different country to the one that the article is talking about. That country has a different safety net, a different strategy for managing the virus, and a different set of vaccines available to it.

Australia shouldn't give up on its strategy of COVID eradication just because American drug overdoses are up.

Is there a good explanation for why? It seems so unbelievable that the number hasn't gone up that I would assume an error somewhere.

The depression and suicides don't happen during the crisis but afterwards.

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