Launch of 988 hotline linked with drop in suicide deaths among teens, young adults

Nearly 4,400 fewer U.S. teens and young adults died by suicide than projected in the first two-and-a-half years of the 988 mental health crisis hotline, a sign the program is working even as it faces long-term funding challenges (Source: “988 hotline’s launch is linked to thousands of fewer suicide deaths among teens and young adults,” Associated Press, April 22).
 
Suicide deaths among 15- to 23-year-olds were 11% lower than what researchers expected between July 2022 — when the lifeline launched — and December 2024, researchers wrote in a study published Wednesday in JAMA.
 
The researchers can’t say for certain that 988 was the sole cause of the decline, and the U.S. suicide rate is down overall, but the study found that the 10 states that had the largest increases in call volumes following the launch of 988 also saw significantly larger gaps in expected vs. actual suicide deaths. The reductions were also greater in younger people than people older than 65, who are less likely to use the lifeline. And they saw no similar changes when looking at suicide deaths in England, where no comparable lifeline existed during the study period.