Some 988 suicide hotline calls in NY are routed out of state. A House bill could fix that

Emily Barnes, New York State Team
·2 min read

Right now, some suicide and mental health emergency calls made by New Yorkers are routed out of state based on the caller's area code.

A bill recently introduced by a New York congressman aims to change that, so cries for mental health help are addressed faster by local emergency personnel.

Rep. Marc Molinaro, who represents the 19th District, introduced the 988 Lifeline Location Improvement Act of 2023 Tuesday, adding to earlier efforts to push the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to implement technology that would reroute New Yorkers' National 988 Crisis Lifeline calls to local call centers.

"911 calls are rerouted to local call centers. There’s no reason we can’t do the same for 988," Molinaro said. "We know the 988 Lifeline is a proven life-saving tool and should maximize its full potential."

U.S. Rep. Marc Molinaro, R-N.Y., in the Longworth House Office Building on Capitol Hill on October 23, 2023 in Washington, D.C.
U.S. Rep. Marc Molinaro, R-N.Y., in the Longworth House Office Building on Capitol Hill on October 23, 2023 in Washington, D.C.

What is the National 988 Crisis Lifeline?

The 988 Lifeline "provides free and confidential emotional support to people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, across the U.S.," the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline website states.

In November, 28,682 hotline calls were routed and received in New York. Over 25,000 calls were answered in-state, which equals an 89% in-state answer rate. The number of calls routed and received nearly doubled from over 14,000 in November 2022, four months after the system was revamped by the federal government in July 2022.

One year later: What’s working and what’s not with the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline

Why do 988 calls sometimes go out of state?

Unlike 911 calls, which are routed to a local call center based on the caller's current location, 988 calls are routed based on the person's area code.

In November, 28,682 National 988 Crisis Lifeline calls were routed and received in New York. Over 25,000 calls were answered in-state, which equals an 89% in-state answer rate.
In November, 28,682 National 988 Crisis Lifeline calls were routed and received in New York. Over 25,000 calls were answered in-state, which equals an 89% in-state answer rate.

If someone moves or travels, their call to 988 could be sent to a call center hundreds of miles away from their current location.

And according to Molinaro, 988 is not as effective if the person answering the call is unfamiliar with the caller's location and can't provide accurate, local resources.

Suicide hotline revamped: Suicide lifeline calls skyrocket in NY. What to know when 988 hotline launches this month

How would the 988 bill change things?

Introduced alongside Rep. Paul Tonko (D-NY-20), the legislation requires the FCC to establish a multi-stakeholder advisory committee to develop and rollout 988 geolocation services.

The committee must be comprised of members from key sectors — telecommunications, handset manufacturing, 911 services, state and local government and representatives from organizations involved in suicide prevention, crisis intervention, veterans' services, substance use treatment and mental health treatment.

A companion bill has also been introduced in the Senate by Senators John Barrasso and Ben Ray Lujan.

Emily Barnes is the New York State Team consumer advocate reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Contact Barnes at ebarnes@gannett.com or on Twitter @byemilybarnes.

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: NY suicide hotline calls going out of state? New bill targets loophole