Effective July 16th, 2022, “988” will serve as the new direct line for the new National Suicide prevention helpline. This new “ 911 for mental health emergencies” can be used by individuals or those looking to assist individuals who are experiencing a mental health crisis or contemplating suicide. When people contact “988”, they will be connected to a trained counselor who will listen, provide support and connect callers to the appropriate resources.
The past few years has created an epidemic of mental anguish and the prevalence of depression and anxiety has alarmingly increased to over 25% since COVID-19 emerged according to the World Health Organization.
This new implementation of the 988 hotline is a once in a generation opportunity to reimagine our mental health crisis standard of care. The need for this has only grown since the pandemic and people in crisis will now have a new way to reach out for help.