WASHINGTON — Douglas Emhoff, the husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, visited a 988 call center, which is part of, on Friday the recently established national hotline is designed to help anyone experiencing a mental health emergency.
Emhoff, who spoke about the importance of mental health for adults and children and addressed the pain last week rising anti-Semitismmet with crisis counselors and call center operators in Hyattsville, Maryland.
“Instead of calling 911, we need to let everyone know that 988 is the answer for any issue involving mental health, suicidal thoughts, or feeling alone,” Emhoff said. He found that the average call hold time is 32 seconds.
The Biden administration wants to highlight the 988 hotline as a support system, especially since the holiday season often evokes feelings of stress, anxiety, and depression.
Emhoff’s visit comes from the frenzy of the entertainment industry this week’s suicide of Stephen “tWitch” Boss, the longtime and popular dance DJ on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. Boss, a former contestant on So You Think You Can Dance, was 40 years old.
“We think it’s important that we shed light on the resources available to every American dealing with mental health issues or emotional distress,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Thursday after she said Death of Boss noted.
Launched in July, the 988 hotline is staffed by mental health advisors across the country and was designed to be as easy to remember as 911. Those who need help can call or text.
The Biden administration this month awarded more than $130 million in grants to 988 and invested more than $432 million to get the hotline up and running.
Eventually, officials envision 988 operators sending mobile mental health response teams to people’s homes and setting up mental health emergency centers that resemble emergency physical pain clinics. But states need more money and time to achieve this.
The new 988 system builds on the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, an existing network of more than 200 crisis centers across the country staffed by counselors who take millions of calls each year. Calls to the legacy lifeline at 800-273-8255 will still ring through even if 988 is present.
The 988 system suffered weeks ago a days outagewhich is being examined.
___
The National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline can be reached by phone or text 988. There is also an online chat at 988lifeline.org.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, transcribed or redistributed without permission.
