Public health messaging aids 988 mental health line awareness

Two-thirds of Americans know about 988, the shorthand phone number for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, a net increase from the same time last year, according to new surveying from the National Alliance on Mental Health. This shows an improvement in public health messaging, the organization said.

Still, there's room for improvement, according to Daniel Gillison Jr., CEO of the National Alliance on Mental Health (NAMI).

"After two years of 988, millions of people have already received help for a mental health crisis or other emotional distress," Gillison said in a public statement. "As we look to year three, NAMI's new poll shows that we're only scratching the surface on getting the word out about this life-saving resource."

Public knowledge about 988 has been flagging since its inception. In May 2023, Pew researchers reported that only 13% of U.S. adults had heard of the lifeline, which can be accessed via phone call or text message and in English or Spanish.

Last November, researchers from NYU added that public awareness of the 988 hotline varied by psychological distress level. Just under half (47.4%) of people with serious psychological distress had heard of the hotline, compared to 40.4% of those with no psychological distress.

In this latest NAMI survey, researchers found that 67% of people in the U.S. had heard of the 988 hotline, but only 23% are at least somewhat familiar with it.

What's more, the people who have accessed 988 said it's been helpful. While only 3% of respondents said they or a loved one had used the 988 crisis line while they were having a mental health or substance use crisis, 68% said they got the help they needed. This is up 13 percentage points from last year.

Additionally, 82% of people said they trust they can get the help they need using the 988 hotline, and 72% are comfortable contacting 988 in a mental health or substance use crisis.

But there's still more work to be done, the polling indicated. For one thing, younger people ages 18 to 29 are less likely to access professional mental healthcare than individuals over age 50. Additionally, 51% of respondents said they aren't sure what type of situation is serious enough to contact 988, indicating a need for clearer public health messaging.

NAMI suggested that the federal government could play a bigger role. Around half of people said Congress should highly prioritize the 988 mental health hotline, while 61% said Congress should highly prioritize mental health more generally.

Equally high proportions of respondents (83%) said there should be state and federal funding to support 988 and crisis response services. Such funding could help 988 support the American public the way respondents said they would like it to. Respondents prioritize being able to speak with a counselor immediately (51%), having healthcare providers arrive at the scene of the crisis (27%) and not being billed for services delivered via 988 (23%).

"People want to know that if they contact 988, they won't be put on hold or wait for help," said Hannah Wesolowski, NAMI's chief advocacy officer, in the press release. "Continued investments in 988 are critical to meet the demand -- and answer calls quickly -- as awareness grows."

Having a specific helpline for mental health and substance use crises is important to Americans, the survey furthered.

Just under half (45%) said they wouldn't feel safe calling 911, as opposed to 988, during a mental health crisis. Another 86% said they think individuals in a mental health crisis should be met with mental health professionals, not a police response.

A high proportion of Black (77%), Hispanic (72%), and LGBTQ+ (80%) said they'd be afraid police might hurt their loved ones when responding to a mental health crisis, further indicating a need for a well-funded, mental health-specific response line.

More than half of respondents (57%) said Congress is doing too little to support mental healthcare in America, while 42% say the same about their state's governor and 46% about their state legislature.

"With strong trust in 988, strong support for policies and funding for 988 and crisis services as well as innovative examples of how states are addressing this challenge, it's time for policymakers at every level to do more to reimagine and strengthen our response to mental health crises and help people get the care they need," Gillison concluded.

Sara Heath has covered news related to patient engagement and health equity since 2015.