Thousands of Texans seeking urgent mental health support are abandoning calls to the state’s 988 suicide hotline due to staffing shortages and a $7 million funding gap.
As Texas faces a growing suicide rate, the state’s crisis hotline is struggling to keep up with demand, leaving vulnerable callers disconnected and without immediate assistance. The hotline, launched in 2022 as part of a federally mandated initiative, was designed to provide rapid access to mental health resources, but dwindling federal funds and an insufficient state budget threaten its long-term viability, reported The Texas Tribune.
Since its inception, the 988 hotline has received over 380,000 calls in Texas, making it the second busiest in the nation.
Nearly a third of those calls occurred in just the first half of 2024. Despite handling a massive call volume, Texas has only five call centers and 166 crisis counselors to manage calls, texts, and online chats. With limited staff and resources, the state’s in-state call response rate remains below the national standard of 90%, leaving many calls routed out of state or unanswered altogether. From January through August 2024, more than 18,500 calls to the Texas hotline were abandoned, with August alone seeing over 2,400 dropped calls.
Call abandonment often occurs when overwhelmed systems transfer callers out of state, creating delays and frustration for those in distress. While Texas has improved its in-state answer rate from 40% in 2021 to nearly 85% today, it still lags behind expectations set by Vibrant Emotional Health, the national administrator of the 988 hotline. Experts warn that the shortfall in staffing and technology could worsen as federal funding declines and states become more reliant on their budgets to sustain operations. The growing number of abandoned calls underscores the urgency of securing long-term funding to expand capacity and improve response times.
In 2023, Texas lawmakers allocated $14 million to operate the state’s crisis hotline system, far short of the $21 million needed, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness Texas. The shortfall limits the ability to expand staff, integrate text and chat options, and enhance technology to streamline service. Counselors are averaging nearly 100 calls each month, with conversations often lasting 15 minutes or longer. Without additional investment, the hotline risks falling further behind, leaving callers in crisis without the support they need.
Efforts to address the funding shortfall are underway, with Sen. José Menéndez filing Senate Bill 188 ahead of the upcoming legislative session. The bill proposes the creation of a dedicated state trust fund to support the 988 hotline, similar to the funding model used for 911 emergency services. The trust fund would be financed through a small surcharge on cellphone bills, providing a more stable and predictable revenue stream to expand services, increase counselor wages, and ensure 24/7 availability of text and chat support.
Advocates point to states like Florida, which operates 13 call centers for its 988 hotline, as a model for Texas to follow, reported the Tribune. With only five centers currently serving the nation’s second-largest population, Texas is under-equipped to meet the growing demand for mental health crisis services. Supporters of the proposed trust fund emphasize that treating mental health emergencies on par with other emergency services is essential to closing gaps in care and saving lives.