988

English

Logo for the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline

Proper noun

988

1. The telephone number for the suicide prevention lifeline in the United States and Canada.
   • 2023 July 13, Christina Caron, “Is the New 988 Suicide Hotline Working?”, in The New York Times‎^[1]:

     Many still assume that “you call 988 and — much like 911 — that means someone is going to be dispatched to you,” said Hannah Wesolowski, NAMI’s chief advocacy officer. “For the vast majority — almost all callers — that’s not actually the case.”

   • 2024 July 16, Noah Weiland, “Crisis Hotline Has Answered 10 Million Calls, Texts and Chats”, in The New York Times‎^[2]:

     The 988 network has been a rare instance of bipartisanship in federal health policy. President Donald J. Trump in 2020 signed the law establishing the new number, and the Biden administration has implemented the number and expanded a network of more than 200 call centers, which typically operate around the clock.

   • 2024 December 7, Vjosa Isai, “Canada’s 988 Crisis Hotline, a ‘Pathway to Survival,’ One Year Later”, in The New York Times‎^[3]:

     Increasing access to mental health services in remote and rural areas, where suicide rates tend to be higher, is a priority, and the 988 hotline is a useful bridge to those communities, Dr. Crawford said.

Derived terms

• 988blr
• 988twt

Further reading

• 988 (telephone number) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia