The 988 system has been up and running for four years – since July 2022 (see The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline In The U.S.: Status Of Evidence On Implementation). Like many aspects of health and human service policy, it was set up with reimbursement coming from each state (see More Calls, Less Money).

The question raised by a recent report – Paying The Fair Share: Federal Policy & Financing Of Crisis Services – is whether the crisis system can be sustainable without the financial participation of commercial health insurance companies. The authors make the case that commercial insurers cover a significant share of people who experience behavioral health crises (roughly 30%),…