The new mental health hotline is live

The new 24-hour National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline went live on Saturday, with the goal of making it easier for Americans to call for – and receive – the help they need during mental health emergencies.

📝 What’s changing?… Just pick up the phone and text or call “988” – no need to remember a ten-digit number. Though the old 1-800 hotline will still work (cue Logic's sigh of relief), the change aims to give people a more memorable number to turn to for help.

• On the logistical side: The new hotline aims to reduce the number of mental health calls routed to 911, which often results in people being sent to busy waiting rooms or dealing with law enforcement officers who aren’t properly trained to handle mental health crises.

👀 One thing to keep an eye on: While the hotline is a national number, the program itself is administered by states – not the federal government. In effect, this means states are responsible for maintaining local call centers and staffing them with counselors, which some state officials say they’re unsure they have the long-term funding to do.

• Legislation related to the hotline has been passed in 21 states, including four that've established a telecom tax to support the rollout.

📸 The big picture: Over the past four months, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline has experienced a massive influx of calls (up 20%), chats (up 165%), and texts (up 93%), according to Health and Human Services official Miriam Delphin-Rittmon.

+In the know: Between 2016 and 2021, roughly one in six calls to the national lifeline went unanswered.