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Behavioral Health Crisis During COVID-19

Source: CARE TA Center

Resource Type: Documents and Publications

Focus Population: People with Serious Mental Illness (SMI)

Topics: Crisis Response System, Psychiatric or Mental Health Stabilization

This article explores 988 and the National Guidelines for Behavioral Health Crisis Care. The National Guidelines for Behavioral Health Crisis Care was issued by SAMHSA on February 26, 2020, in the form of a Best Practice Toolkit. Just after the toolkit picked up momentum, the National Suicide Hotline Designation Act of 2020 was signed into law. The promise that 988 and the Crisis Toolkit hold to change the trajectory of the lives of thousands upon thousands of people with behavioral healthcare needs cannot be underestimated. The possibility of a person in crisis having someone to call who knows how to help, having someone trained to assist people come to them in their community, and having somewhere to go so that they can receive the right care is truly a game-changer.