WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), co-founders of the bipartisan Senate Mental Health Caucus, other officials, and U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra joined Federal Communications Commission or FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel March 21 to announce a critical step to improve the 9-8-8 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
The proposal contains provisions from the lawmakers’ Local 9-8-8 Response Act of 2023, which would expedite the process of connecting 9-8-8 Lifeline callers with their nearest call center so they can receive appropriate care and resources from mental health professionals and local public safety officials as quickly as possible, while protecting user privacy.
The bipartisan 9-8-8 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline has been critical for supporting Americans in crisis, but currently, calls to the hotline are routed by area code rather than by the caller’s location. As awareness of the hotline increases, it is crucial to ensure that operators can quickly connect callers to a range of mental health services and a full continuum of care.
“The FCC took a vital step today toward making it easier for Americans in crisis to efficiently access lifesaving support,” said Senator Padilla. “Senator Tillis and I made a promise that our bipartisan Senate Mental Health Caucus would work to address our nation’s mental health epidemic and make sure those in crisis know they are not suffering alone. We’re already seeing the impacts we can make by shining a spotlight on these issues and working together. Today’s proposal follows our legislative efforts to quickly and safely connect callers on the 9-8-8 hotline to the local mental health support services they need.”
The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking or NPRM announced today seeks to address the discrepancies and inefficiencies of the current system by proposing the adoption of a rule that would require a georouting solution to be implemented for all wireless calls to the 9-8-8 Lifeline while balancing the privacy needs of individuals in crisis. Georouting refers to technical solutions that enable calls to be directed based on the location of the caller without transmitting the caller’s precise location information. These solutions would permit wireless calls to the 9-8-8 Lifeline to be directed to nearby crisis centers based on factors such as the cell tower that originated the call rather than the area code of the wireless device used to place the call. This system would maintain any privacy requirements carriers may have about the nature of such sensitive calls.
Reliable, timely access to the 9-8-8 Lifeline is crucial to linking people experiencing a suicidal or mental health crisis with immediate support. The 9-8-8 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline offers 24/7 safe, confidential support free of charge to suffering individuals nationwide.
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