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Nearly 20 percent of American adults - 43.8 million people - had a diagnosable mental illness in 2013, according to federal officials. 

The report also noted that 10 million adults had a serious mental illness, 15.7 million had major depressive episodes, 9.3 million had serious thoughts of suicide, 2.7 million made suicide plans and 1.3 million attempted suicide.

 The report added that 2.6 million (about 10 percent) of children aged 12 to 17 suffered major depressive episodes in 2013, but only about 38 percent received treatment for depression.

Last year,  about 34.6 million adults (14.6 percent) received mental health care, including inpatient or outpatient care or prescription medicines.

"It is a serious issue that millions of Americans are needlessly affected by mental illness when they can get effective treatment to restore their well-being," SAMHSA Administrator Pamela Hyde said in an agency news release.

"Now more than ever, people can get the help they need to recover from mental disorders and live full, active lives-they just need to take the first step and seek help," she added.

Findings of the survey was available on the SAMHSA Web site.