The Texas branch of the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is grappling with a $7 million funding shortfall that threatens its ability to handle a growing number of mental health emergencies.
Thousands of calls to the hotline are being abandoned each month as the state faces a surge in demand but lacks the necessary resources to maintain a fully operational crisis intervention system. The hotline, which replaced local crisis lines in 2022, offers critical mental health support for people who are struggling.
Newsweek has reached out to Texas Governor Greg Abbott's office via email for comment on Monday evening.
Why It Matters
Since its inception, the 988 hotline has received over 380,000 calls from Texans, ranking as the second-highest call volume in the United States, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Texas.
A third of those calls were logged between January and June 2024. Yet, underfunding has left the hotline struggling to meet demand. The state allocated $14 million for the hotline in fiscal year 2024, falling far short of the $21 million experts estimate is needed to maintain operations. With reduced federal funding, a persistent workforce shortage, and insufficient state financial support, the system is showing signs of strain.
What We Know
Current staffing levels are insufficient to address the surge in calls. Texas has just five call centers handling 988 services, supported by 166 crisis counselors. This equates to approximately 95 calls per person per month, with most calls lasting 15 minutes.
The state is struggling to meet the 90 percent in-state answer rate standard set by the national 988 administrator, Vibrant Emotional Health. If successful, callers hear an electronic greeting that presents them with specialized choices, including for Spanish speakers, veterans, and LGBTQ+-plus youth. Depending on what callers select, the system could transfer them to an organization that fits their needs, including the Trevor Project and the Veterans Crisis Line.
Instead, just 85 percent of calls are answered locally, with the rest routed to backup centers across the U.S. The impact is clear: the more transfers a call undergoes, the more likely it is to be abandoned. Between January and August 2024, over 18,500 calls were dropped. In August alone, 12 percent of calls were abandoned, making Texas the fifth highest in the nation for dropped calls, according to Vibrant's data.
Expanding the hotline's capacity, including its text and chat services, would require doubling the number of counselors, a feat that would need significant investment, especially as the state's suicide rate has increased 37 percent since 2000.
Emergency medical services for other types of health crises are routinely reimbursed by Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance. Still, Texas has not allowed Medicaid to cover crisis intervention services, such as 988.
What People Are Saying
Jennifer Battle, who supervises the hotline at the Harris Center for Mental Health and IDD: "We're doing way more work than we've ever been able to do. If you want us actually to meet the volume of Texas, then somebody's got to decide to increase the resources that are made available to centers so that we can increase the number of people we serve."
She added: "The state wants us to meet all these targets, and absolutely, we want to do that. But ultimately, if you're only funding half of what we need to make it happen, we are still over-performing for what we've been provided."
The Texas Medical Association wrote on its website in August 2024: "While more than $1 billion in federal funds helped launch the 988 number, local call centers must secure support from state and local governments to keep it going."
What Happens Next
Texas' legislative session, starting January 14, 2025, will be pivotal. Senate Bill 188, filed by San Antonio Democratic state Representative José Menéndez, will be a central focus as lawmakers debate how to provide stable funding for the 988 hotline.
A proposed 988 trust fund would be supported by a surcharge collected from cellphone bills, allowing call centers to expand capacity, increase counselor pay and ensure that technology like text and chat is always available.
If you or someone you know is considering suicide, contact the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988, text "988" to the Crisis Text Line at 741741 or go to 988lifeline.org
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press, who published in partnership The Texas Tribune.
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