The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline’s First Year

Successes and looking toward a future where everyone gets the help they need

The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline went live on July 16, 2022. This new, 3-digit dialing code replaced the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and offers more support options for people dealing with a mental health crisis or seeking help for a loved one.

Anyone can call, chat, or text 988 to get free support for thoughts of suicide, substance use concerns, or any type of emotional distress. The Lifeline also has 4 phone lines for specific groups:

• Veterans, service members, National Guard and reserve members, and their loved ones can dial 988 and select option 1 to connect to the Veterans Crisis Line.
• Spanish speakers can dial 988 and select option 2 to connect to the Spanish Language Line.
• LGBTQIA2S+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, intersex, asexual, and two-spirit) teens and young adults can dial 988 and select option 3 to connect to the Trevor Project. This line is also available through text and chat.
• American Indian and Alaska Native people with a Washington area code can dial 988 and select option 4 to reach the Native and Strong Lifeline.

When you contact 988, trained counselors will listen, provide compassionate support, and offer resources 24/7, 365 days a year. The 988 Lifeline is anonymous and confidential, and you don’t have to give your location. Fewer than 2% of calls made to 988 need emergency services, like ambulance follow-up.

A Step in the Right Direction

“It’s been so exciting to watch this program grow over the last year!” said Lonnie Peterson, Washington State Department of Health 988 Crisis Systems section manager. “Our state’s three 988 Lifeline crisis centers do amazing work every day to help people who are in crisis. And everyone who’s part of 988 at the Department of Health works diligently behind the scenes to keep everything up and running.”

With this combined effort, 988’s first year of operation has been marked by success. National data show a 75% increase in calls answered since 988 launched. Before 988’s launch, Vibrant Emotional Health, the 988 national administrator, didn’t track the percentage of Washington’s chats and texts answered.

Between July 2022 and June 2023, 988 Lifeline crisis centers in Washington answered:

• 65,029 calls
• 12,168 texts
• 13,064 chats

“Crisis Connection’s 988 calls have increased 49% from this time last year,” said Michelle McDaniel, CEO of Crisis Connections, one of Washington’s 988 Lifeline crisis centers.

Frontier Behavioral Health: Serving East of the Mountains

Another of Washington’s 3 988 Lifeline crisis centers, Frontier Behavioral Health, has also seen a large jump in calls. From July 2021 to June 2022, the crisis center took 3,082 calls. From July 2022 to June 2023, they took 4,398 calls.

“We’ve been providing crisis services over the phone since the early 1980s, but this first year of 988 has been very exciting as we’ve hired additional staff and worked to implement a new phone system,” said Stacey Okihara, director of crisis response services at Frontier Behavioral Health.

“The transition has had its challenges, but Frontier Behavioral Health already supports a comprehensive mental health safety net, and our in-house resources help us better support 988 callers,” said Carla Savalli, public information officer at Frontier Behavioral Health.

Native and Strong Lifeline: The First Program of Its Kind in the Nation

Another new service is the Native and Strong Lifeline. This line was introduced in Washington in November 2022. It provides much-needed crisis support for American Indian and Alaska Native communities, where suicide deaths and attempts are higher compared to the general population.

The Native and Strong Lifeline is staffed with crisis counselors who are tribal members or descendants with close community ties. These counselors provide crisis support that focuses on traditional and cultural healing.

As of June 2023, the Native and Strong Lifeline is the only crisis line dedicated to supporting Native people.

“Now that people know Native people are on the other line, they’re more likely to call,” said Rochelle Hamilton, Tribal Operations Manager for Volunteers of America Western Washington. This crisis center operates the Native and Strong Lifeline.

“We’re celebrating that success because this is a brand-new concept,” Hamilton said. “Typically, things are operated by people who have good hearts and good intentions, but don’t know us. There’s never been a service operated fully by Native staff, and now other states are looking to the Native and Strong Lifeline as a model.”

Onward and Upward

The crisis services offered by the 988 Lifeline will continue to grow. The goal is to form a statewide crisis care system where callers in distress can get all the help they need, including:

• Mobile crisis response teams for immediate care
• A bed at a treatment center
• Next-day appointments with a local mental health professional

“Our behavioral health system should offer three essential types of support: someone to talk to, someone to respond, and somewhere to go,” McDaniel said. “Recent legislation supporting the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline program and other critical services allows us to redefine crisis care and promote healing and recovery for those in crisis.”

No matter the changes on the horizon for 988, one thing will stay the same. Anyone, anywhere, can call at any time for support during a crisis. You don’t need to have thoughts of suicide or substance use concerns to get help. If you’re in distress, the counselors at 988 can help.

More Information

Information in this blog changes rapidly. Sign up to be notified whenever we post new articles. For more information from the Washington State Department of Health, visit doh.wa.gov.

Questions about COVID-19? Visit our COVID-19 website to learn more about vaccines and booster doses, testing, and more. You can also contact the Department of Health call center at 1–800–525–0127 and press # from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday, and 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday — Sunday and observed state holidays. Language assistance is available.