“In its first year, the 988 Lifeline received 5 million, calls, chats and texts – that’s a 35% increase compared to the last year of the ten-digit line,” said Levi. “And that’s even more impressive when you realize that according to a recent Pew survey, only 13% of U.S. adults have heard of 988 and know what it’s for.”

The 988 Lifeline – open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week – is designed to help people dealing with issues like depression, substance use, and thoughts of suicide receive immediate help and get connected to additional resources. It has much success to report, as average wait times to receive help dropped from 2 minutes 39 seconds to 41 seconds.

“But the number that really caught my attention,” Levi continued, “is that the number of texts answered by 988 grew by 1,135%.”

Why the massive increase in text rates? “There’s a natural appeal to texts. Many people these days, especially younger people, prefer texting to talking on the phone.”

Shawn Kinney, a 988 counselor in West Virginia, explained the appeal of texting for young people. Not only do they find it an easier way to discuss difficult subjects, but texting also allows people to seek help safely, regardless of where they are or who they’re with. Crisis texts have come from people sitting on public buses, kids hiding from bullies in school bathrooms, and even people in the same room as their abusers.

“A lot of people would not reach out to us if it wasn’t for that [texting] option,” Kinney said.

Despite its success, the 988 Lifeline still faces challenges, as staffing shortages continue to be an issue. Only 18 states hit the answer-rate goal of 90% in May, which means calls had to be sent to counselors in different states, staff who are less likely to be aware of local resources to refer people for follow-up help.

Improvements to the system are in the works. In the second year, the Lifeline is rolling out new features, like newly-launched Spanish-language texting. Video calls are also in the works for people who are deaf or hard-of-hearing.

The Biden administration has invested nearly a billion dollars into 988, but there’s no guarantee that funding will continue. Some states, like California, have also made significant investments, but states across the board will need to step up in the future to ensure the operability of the lifeline.

Hannah Wesolowski, the Chief Advocacy Officer for the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), notes that 988 has made significant strides in year one but stressed that more work is needed.

“Everyone always talks about how it took decades to build the 911 system, and it did. But if we take decades to build this system, we’re going to lose a lot of lives,” she says.

Read the full article or listen to a 4-minute summary here.

Levi, Ryan and Gorenstein, Dan. “988 mental health crisis line gets 5 million, calls, texts and chats in first year.” NPR, 15 Jul 2023, https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2023/07/15/1187862144/988-mental-health-crisis-line-gets-5-million-calls-texts-and-chats-in-first-year.

Photo by Gadiel Lazcano on Unsplash