988 hotline has received 5 million calls, texts

The mental health center in Houston is a good example of how the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is faring across the nation.

Staffers such as Jennifer Battle and others have responded to more than 52,000 crisis calls from local Texans in the past 12 months alone. That’s an 80% pickup rate, up from 45% under the old system before it was revamped by the federal government in 2022.