Over 16 Million Contacts Made to the 988 Crisis Hotline Since Its Launch Through December 2024

Since its introduction in July 2022, the 988 suicide and crisis hotline has seen over 16 million calls, texts, and chats from individuals seeking mental health support nationwide. According to a recent study published in JAMA Network Open, researchers, including Dr. Jonathan Purtle from New York University, analyzed the usage patterns over the first 30 months of operation. They found that approximately 16.3 million contacts were made by users across the United States, with the majority being voice calls (70.1%), followed by texts (18.0%) and online chats (11.9%). Notably, about 11% of these contacts were redirected to the Veterans Crisis Line.