LAS VEGAS ( KLAS ) — A new 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline call center coming to Southern Nevada in six months will improve response times to calls and reduce the number of calls that go to a national backup center.
A $49.7 million contract was approved on Tuesday with Carelon Behavioral Health. The new call center is expected to sometime around early May. The contract was approved by the Nevada Board of Examiners, according to a news release.
Nevada is currently served by one call center: Crisis Support Services of Nevada (CSSNV), located in Reno. Carelon Behavioral Health will incorporate CSSNV into its operation, using CSSNV’s experience as the second longest-running crisis call center in the country and establishing it as a member of Carelon’s national network.
Carelon projects that 95% of calls to Nevada’s 988 Lifeline will be answered within 20 seconds. As of September 2024, Nevada’s 988 Lifeline answered 76% of calls, with the rest routed to a national backup center.
Nevadans statewide can reach the 988 Lifeline 24 hours a day, seven days a week by calling or texting 988 or by visiting 988Lifeline.org.https://988lifeline.org/ Callers will be connected to a trained Crisis Counselor, who can help Nevadans with the daily stressors in their lives, de-escalate someone in crisis or even provide advice for how to help a friend, family member or loved one.