Maine Department of Health and Human Services receives $2.2M 988 and Behavioral Health Crisis Services Programs from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

Improving Maine's 988 lifeline capacity - abstract: improving Maine's 988 lifeline capacity the improving Maine's 988 lifeline capacity project will sustain and expand Maine's statewide 988 lifeline contact center, serving all 16 Maine counties (1.41 m residents), and operated by the opportunity alliance under contract with Maine's office of behavioral health. Investment will expand crisis line staffing, maintain a 90%+ in-state answer rate across all 988 modalities, and strengthen coordination between 988 and Maine's 911 emergency system. These efforts will ensure all Maine residents, particularly rural, older adult, veteran, and youth populations at elevated risk, have reliable access to life-saving behavioral health crisis support. This project directly advances the make america healthy again agenda by strengthening Maine's crisis response infrastructure and expanding access to evidence-based behavioral health care for a high-need rural state. Capacity development for 988 Maine is needed to meet rising contact volume (up 102% since 2023) and handle time, expand in-state chat/text routing (currently under 10%), and extend 988-911 transfer protocol adoption. Strategies and interventions include: sustain 988 staffing capacity; maintain technology and cybersecurity compliance; expand in-state chat/text answering; strengthen 911-988 interactivity and psap training; enhance sud screening; formalize tribal partnership; and build long-term program sustainability. The geographic area covered by this project is all 16 Maine counties. The population of focus is all mainers experiencing behavioral health, substance use, or suicidal crises who contact 988 (32,360 contacts answered in the past year). Populations at elevated risk include older men, rural residents, veterans, youth, and those with compounded risk factors. Project goals and measurable objectives: goal 1: sustain and expand 988 performance across all modalities. Objectives: maintain an in-state call answer rate ≥90%; increase in-state chat/text routing to 50% by year 1 and 90% by year 2; maintain ≥95% of calls answered within 20 seconds and ≥90% within 15 seconds; maintain a call abandonment rate <5%. Goal 2: ensure clinical quality, workforce sufficiency, and supervisory capacity. Objectives: implement a process improvement framework by year 2; document efforts to reduce the supervisor-to-staff ratio through hiring and retention efforts by year 2; define sentinel event protocols by year 2; maintain the 988 follow-up program for consenting contacts. Goal 3: strengthen statewide 988-911 integration. Objectives: train 6 additional psaps/dispatch only centers by year 2; increase psap adopters of the 988 transfer protocol from 14 to 20 by year 3. Goal 4: expand sud response capacity and strengthen tribal engagement. Objectives: implement enhanced sud screening protocols by year 1; partner with wabanaki public health & wellness to ensure effective 988 services responsive to tribal members in Maine by year 1. Goal 5: build sustainability and public awareness. Objectives: submit a 988 sustainability plan by march 29, 2029; increase statewide education and awareness through ongoing broad outreach activities such as hosting 988MAINE.com and public presentations. (allowable activity)