Mayor and Council
100 Gregory Lane, Pleasant Hill, CA 94523-3323 – (925) 671-5270 www.pleasanthillca.org
August 1, 2022
The Honorable Anthony Portantino, Chair
Senate Appropriations Committee
California State Capitol, Room 412
Sacramento, CA 95814
RE: Support AB 988 (Bauer-Kahan) The Miles Hall Lifeline and Suicide Prevention Act Dear Chair Portantino:
The City of Pleasant Hill strongly supports Assembly Bill 988 (Bauer-Kahan), known as the Miles Hall Lifeline and Suicide Prevention Act, to implement the national 988 behavioral health emergency response system in California so that everyone experiencing a behavioral health crisis can access life-saving care.
In October of 2020, both chambers of Congress unanimously passed, and the President signed, historic legislation, the National Suicide and Mental Health Crisis Hotline Designation Act, establishing a new phone line (988) for suicide prevention and immediate behavioral health crisis response nationwide. States are tasked with creating the framework and funding the systems to receive and respond to calls and deliver appropriate crisis care for those experiencing a behavioral health or suicide crisis.
This month, the 988 phone number became available in California and across the country, but as the calls come in, Californians in crisis will find themselves at the mercy of a county-by-county ad-hoc approach to crisis response. We have the opportunity to create a sustainable system that ensures California leads the nation in crisis response. Initial federal and state investments prepared California for the launch of the number, but they are not enough to build the sustainable crisis response system that is needed in response to those phone calls.
Ongoing costs to sustain the 988-crisis response system are significant. To create an effective crisis response system that every Californian has universal and reliable access to, it must have a permanent and sustainable funding source. AB 988 introduces a small telephone surcharge, as permitted in federal 988 legislation, set at only $0.08 per line per month for the first two years with a lifetime cap of $0.30 per line per month to fund the California crisis centers and mobile crisis teams.
Currently, a person in crisis in Los Angeles County is guaranteed a vastly different response from someone in Modoc County. It is critical to ensure first responders, behavioral health agencies, call centers and healthcare providers are all providing consistent and compassionate crisis response across the state. In addition, investments in 988 coming from various federal and state sources will further complicate efforts to coordinate crisis response. AB 988 tasks the Office of Emergency Services (OES) with creating a technical advisory board at OES to ensure the integration of 988 and 911. AB 988 also tasks Health and Human Services (HHS) with developing a five-year implementation plan for 988. While HHS will be undertaking a planning process for broader crisis intervention, a distinct technical planning process for 988 is imperative.
The City of Pleasant Hill is supportive of AB 988 and additional measures to address the unmet behavioral health needs in Contra Costa County. Our support is evidenced by staff participation in “A3” workstreams to provide these much-needed services to “Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime.” AB 988 enjoys bi-partisan co-authorship from nearly one-third of the Legislature. The bill is also supported by a wide range of consumer advocates, health care providers, and others, including the National Union of Health Care Workers, the National Association of Social Workers, NAMI of California, Mental Health America of California, American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, California Psychological Association, and the California Pan-Ethnic Health Network as well as more than 2,500 individuals.
California has an extraordinary opportunity to transform our behavioral health crisis response system and save countless lives by expanding access to vital behavioral health resources all through one easy-to-remember three-digit number.
For these reasons, the City of Pleasant Hill strongly supports AB 988 and respectfully requests your support.
Sincerely,
Michael G. Harris, OD
Mayor