988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline
The National Suicide Hotline Designation Act of 2020 (NSHD) designated 9-8-8 as the new three-digit number for the national suicide prevention and mental health crisis hotline. As the nation's most populous state, California experiences the largest number of calls to 988. In 2020, about 1 out of 8 calls to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (NSPL) originated in California. To handle this volume, a network of 12 local California Lifeline Crisis Centers provide free and confidential emotional support to individual 988 callers from all 58 counties who are in behavioral health crisis.
Crisis line staff and volunteers facilitate suicide prevention and behavioral health crisis line services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. The crisis line staff and volunteers provide an initial suicide risk screening and assessment consistent with NSPL guidelines, offer de-escalation, and provide clients with information and referrals to link the client to the appropriate community resources in the city or county of the client or person in crisis when known and available.
Additional Resources
Contact Information
