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Ahead of 988 Mental Health Hotline Launch, Public Health Officials Concerned About Jurisdiction Readiness
With the national launch of 988, an emergency mental health crisis hotline, scheduled for July, a survey conducted by RAND Corporation found that fewer than half of public health officials who are helping with the rollout are confident that their jurisdiction is prepared in terms of financing, staffing, and/or infrastructure.
RAND, a not-for-profit research organization, interviewed 180 state, regional, and county behavioral health program directors who provide jurisdictional coverage for more than 120 million Americans, or about one-third of the nation. Based on its interviews, RAND found that 51% of respondents said they had not been involved in the development of a strategic plan related to the launch of 988, and 16% said they had helped develop a budget to support 988 operations.
>> READ RAND Corporation’s “Preparedness for 988 Throughout the United States” report
“Our findings have confirmed what many advocates and experts feared: Communities throughout the US have not had the time or resources to adequately prepare for the debut of the 988 hotline number,” Ryan McBain, co-lead on the research project and a policy researcher at RAND, said in a news release. “We highlight several areas that jurisdictions need to address both prior to the launch of 988 in July and in the months that follow.”
In 2020, Congress approved legislation to create 988. The hotline, which will supercede the current National Suicide Prevention Line, is scheduled to go live on July 16. Use of the National Suicide Lifeline has soared, from 50,000 calls in 2005 to more than 2.4 million in 2020.
RAND surveyed mental health agency directors about their preparedness for the 988 launch, focusing questions on 4 domains: strategic planning, financing, infrastructure, and service coordination. The organization’s findings included:
- 85% of respondents reported having a mental health emergency response hotline or call center operating in their jurisdiction, although fewer than half were part of the Lifeline network that will field 988 calls. This, RAND noted in its news release, could leave callers reaching hotline operators who are unfamiliar with local resources;
- 48% of respondents’ jurisdictions have a short-term crisis stabilization program;
- 28% have urgent care units for mental health;
- and 22% have crisis call centers or hotlines that can schedule intake and outpatient appointments on behalf of individuals in need.
Among the jurisdictions with existing hotlines, 55% have staff specifically trained to interact with children, 46% have training to interact with individuals experiencing homelessness, and 45% are trained to interact with LGBTQ+ individuals.
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