Industry Bulletins | July 23, 2020
FCC Designates ‘988’ As 3-Digit Number For National Suicide Prevention Hotline
The Federal Communications Commission adopted rules to establish 988 as the new, nationwide, 3-digit phone number for Americans in crisis to connect with suicide prevention and mental health crisis counselors. The rules require all phone service providers to direct all 988 calls to the existing National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by July 16, 2022.
The new rules will apply to all telecommunications carriers as well as all interconnected and one-way Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) service provider organizations. They provide for a two-year transition, reflecting the real challenges of this nationwide effort, including the need for widespread network . . .