The National Suicide Hotline Designation Act (2020)
Congress designated 988 as the national suicide and crisis lifeline number, replacing the 10-digit 1-800-273-TALK line. The law gave states roughly a year to prepare crisis infrastructure before 988 went live.
988 launched nationwide on July 16, 2022, shifting crisis support from a hotline to an emergency-call-style system.
The law created a permanent federal funding stream for crisis services and pushed states to build comprehensive crisis response.
This grant continues that buildout, funding Oklahoma's local 988 capacity under the same cooperative-agreement program the 2020 law established.
