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For Immediate Release
Treatment Advocacy Center Joins Nation’s Other Leading Mental Health Organizations in Releasing a Comprehensive Roadmap for Reimagining Crisis Response for Mental Health, Substance Use Disorders and Suicide Prevention
The 988 Crisis Hotline is Coming in July 2022 and Communities and Activists Will Need the Right Resources to Make it Successful
July of 2022 will officially introduce 988: a new telephone number people in our communities, states and nation will be able to call or text when a crisis arises. While this is an important step, without a comprehensive plan for the rollout, communities will be unprepared to take advantage of its promise and 988 will be little more than a phone number.
Today, a diverse coalition of 15 of the nation’s leading mental health organizations released a joint plan titled, “Consensus Approach and Recommendations for the Creation of a Comprehensive Crisis Response System,” which offers federal and state policymakers a tried-and-tested, evidence-based toolkit for implementing a full continuum of mental health and substance use care in conjunction with the federally mandated 988 crisis hotline for mental health emergencies.
Parts of 988 are currently in place, and this roadmap fills in the critical gaps, highlighting the additional steps and resources necessary to create a full continuum of care to safely and compassionately resolve crises.
“The creation and launch of 988 presents us with both an opportunity and a responsibility,” said Treatment Advocacy Center Executive Director Lisa Dailey. “We have a chance to rethink our entire approach to the treatment of mental illness through the lens of crisis, and in doing so better serve everyone in our communities. But we can’t afford to fail.
“If we simply add a new number to a disjointed system without building the missing parts and fixing the broken ones, it will not reach those most in need.”
This plan will be of great use and benefit to those who are responsible for figuring out how to implement 988 and advocates at the state and federal level who are eager to compare what they see across the country to the best practices contained in this roadmap.
To read the full plan, click here.
The unprecedented leadership collaboration brings together CEOs from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, American Psychiatric Association, American Psychological Association, Massachusetts Association for Mental Health, Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute, Mental Health America, National Association for Behavioral Healthcare, National Alliance on Mental Illness, National Council for Mental Wellbeing, One Mind, Peg’s Foundation, Steinberg Institute, The Kennedy Forum, Treatment Advocacy Center, and Well Being Trust. Drawing upon their collective expertise and influence, their detailed blueprint for advancing mental health care reimagines possibilities for stemming the mental health crisis as the current National Suicide Prevention Lifeline transitions to a 988 hotline for mental health emergencies, beginning July 2022.
Organizations and CEO Leadership:
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention / CEO, Robert Gebbia
American Psychiatric Association / CEO & Medical Director, Saul Levin, MD, MPA, FRCP-E
American Psychological Association / CEO and Exec. Vice President, Arthur C. Evans, Jr., PhD
Massachusetts Association for Mental Health / President and CEO, Danna Mauch, PhD
Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute / President and CEO, Andy Keller, PhD
Mental Health America / President and CEO, Schroeder Stribling, MSW
National Association for Behavioral Healthcare / President and CEO, Shawn Coughlin
National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) / CEO, Daniel H. Gillison, Jr.
National Council for Mental Wellbeing / President and CEO, Charles Ingoglia, MSW
One Mind / Chairman, Garen Stagline; President, Brandon Staglin
Peg’s Foundation / President, Rick Kellar, M.B.A.
Steinberg Institute / Chair, Thomas Insel, M.D. (former director NIMH until 2015)
The Kennedy Forum / Former U.S. Rep. (D-RI) and Founder, Kennedy Forum, Patrick J. Kennedy
Treatment Advocacy Center / Executive Director, Lisa Dailey
Well Being Trust / Chief Executive, Tyler Norris, MDiv; President, Benjamin F. Miller, PsyD
