988 Enters Its Fourth Year as Demand Grows and the Mental Health and Substance Use Landscape Shifts Author: Heather Saunders Published: Jul 14, 2026

https://www.kff.org/mental-health/988-enters-its-fourth-year-as-demand-grows-and-the-mental-health-and-substance-use-landscape-shifts/?utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8nexfNCOcx6vRl2tJvtWIQ27tDi57tAozSZuVPamfovV8ghILTUX6S0PinaYU_54EclLKzHD0Jh9KXi7csB-wOyd8R9Q&_hsmi=428329347&utm_content=428329347&utm_source=hs_email On the Fourth Anniversary of 988, Demand for the National Suicide and Crisis Hotline Continues to Grow A new KFF analysis finds that demand for the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline continues to grow as the national hotline marks its fourth anniversary on July 16, with the volume of calls, texts, and chats 15% higher than a year earlier and up nearly 50% from two years ago. The 988 service has received 23.3 million contacts since its launch in July 2022, including 15.8 million calls, 4.2 million texts, and 3.4 million chats, according to the analysis of the latest data. Monthly contact volume has steadily increased, consistently surpassing 600,000 contacts per month over the past year and approaching or exceeding 700,000 per month since late 2025. Most states now answer 85% or more of 988 calls in-state, including 26 states that answer at least 90% of calls in-state. In-state answer rates ranged from 62% in Washington, D.C. to 99% in Mississippi and Rhode Island. Calls not answered in-state are redirected to national backup centers, where counselors may be less familiar with local resources. Suicide deaths declined modestly in 2024 and remained relatively stable in provisional data for 2025 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). At the same time, few states have adopted telecom fees to help fund 988 call centers and other crisis services, and staffing is a challenge, with most call centers reporting staffing shortages. Also newly available from KFF is an analysis of trends in substance use and suicide mortality using data from the CDC. It finds that substance use and suicide deaths combined were the third leading cause of death in the U.S., behind heart disease and cancer. Deaths due to substance use and suicide increased over the past decade and peaked during the pandemic. Read the 988 analysis