As 988 calls rise across California, the state will collect less to support it
Good morning and welcome to the A.M. Alert!
988’s CALL FOR HELP
Every month for the past three months, about 4,500 of the almost 50,000 calls to suicide crisis lines in California went unanswered.
Over the past year, more than half of all 988 texts and chat messages initiated within California had to be answered out of state, by providers who may not know about the caller’s local crisis response systems.
These are problems that 988 California Consortium, a group representing existing lifeline centers, says it needs more money to fix. And yet, starting in January, the state will be collecting less revenue for the 988 program: a surcharge on phone bills to fund the resource will be going from 8 cents to 5 cents.
The details of the disconnect were hashed out Tuesday during an informational hearing held by the Assembly’s Select Committee on California’s Mental Health Crisis.
There, Steve Yarbrough from the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services explained that the state is collecting less revenue because it had a surplus in its account from the year before, and could charge less to meet the existing funding requirement.
Narges Zohoury Dillon, president of the 988 California Consortium, said the baseline funding needs to be increased, and said providers have not had much of a voice in determining budgetary priorities.
“Our hope is actually that we would be part of that budget process,” said Dillon, adding that they’d like to work on a three-year projection of how to meet the existing need.
Earlier this year, Gov. Gavin Newsom gave 988 crisis centers $17.5 million in one-time funds to address call capacity. The number of calls in California has almost doubled since 2021, according to Vibrant Emotional Health, the national administrator for 988.
“This is something that is going to grow, whether we plan to budget for it or not,” said committee member Pilar Schiavo, D-Chatsworth. “I do think that this is an area where we really need to prioritize and make sure that we’re planning for that.”
SPEAKING OF 988….
Via David Lightman...
President Donald Trump Monday signed into law a bill aimed at making the 988 suicide lifeline more reliable and efficient.
The bill, which included legislation authored by Sens. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., and Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., resulted from problems that resulted in a day-long 988 Lifeline outage three years ago.
The bill, said Padilla, will help officials “better identify and prevent cyberattacks so people in crisis have access to the Lifeline whenever they need it.”
The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline began in 2022 and has been reached 16.5 million times.
A cyberattack on the system in December 2022 meant people trying to call the line got recorded messages saying there was an outage.
The new legislation, called the 988 Lifeline Cybersecurity Responsibility Act, will mean more coordination with the Chief Information Security Officer in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which aims to better protect the Lifeline from such attacks.
The administrator will have to tell the government about system vulnerability and incidents within 24 hours of finding them. The independent Government Accountability Office will conduct a study evaluating cybersecurity risks and vulnerabilities in the system.
CBC ENDORSES LAUREN BABB TOMLINSON FOR CONGRESS
Via Nicole Nixon...
The Congressional Black Caucus endorsed regional Planned Parenthood leader Lauren Babb Tomlinson for the 6th Congressional District.
Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-NY and chair of the CBC PAC, said Babb Tomlinson “represents the kind of new generation leadership our country urgently needs.”
He said the PAC is supporting her “because she understands what’s at stake for communities who are being squeezed by rising costs and left behind by politics as usual.”
Babb Tomlinson, the chief public affairs officer for Planned Parenthood Mar Monte, announced her campaign for the seat last month and has also earned endorsements from the Voter Protection Project and Vote Mama PAC.
The open 6th District seat has drawn interest from candidates after incumbent Rep. Ami Bera announced he would run in the nearby 3rd District next year following a voter-approved redraw of California’s congressional map.
Babb Tomlinson also faces former state Sen. Richard Pan and Sacramento District Attorney Thien Ho.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“I’m grateful for all the encouragement, and I’ve received a ton of it from across the state, people and organizations that I know care deeply about the future of California, but I am focused on my role as attorney general at the moment.”
– Attorney General Rob Bonta, waving off recent speculation that he is considering a run for CA governor, during an event at Natomas High School
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