Ask Congress to fund 988 call centers to prevent suicides

Published 1:30 am Saturday, September 3, 2022

September is National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month. As a volunteer advocate with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, I am calling on my members of Congress to pass legislation to prevent suicides and support crisis care.

I lost my 15-year old son, Taylen Dorsey, to suicide on Feb. 18, 2021. He was a 10th grader at Auburn Riverside High School in Auburn. In his honor, I am writing you to bring this life saving issue to light in order to save our youth. They need us, the community, to help them navigate these hard time we’re collectively facing right now. No other parent or family should have to navigate mental health crisis without proper support.

So many youth are struggling right now and don’t know where to turn to for help. Please join me if this fight to save lives.

The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline must be sustainably funded so that confidential, voluntary services by trained counselors are accessible. H.R.7116, the 988 Implementation Act, would provide federal funding and guidance to states for 988 crisis services across the nation.

An alternative to 911 for mental health crises, 988 connects callers to Lifeline centers. These centers de-escalate 98 percent of crisis calls without dispatching emergency services. Well-resourced crisis support systems can connect callers with local resources, including someone to talk to (call centers), someone to respond (mobile crisis teams), and somewhere to go (crisis stabilization centers). We must ensure that every state has the capacity to provide comprehensive crisis response services to help save lives.

For more information, go to afsp.org/988.

Join me in urging Congress to take action to #StopSuicide!

Shailyn Malone

Pacific