Doug Emhoff visits mental health call center to emphasize struggles during holidays
Misty Severi
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Second gentleman Doug Emhoff visited a 988 mental health call center in Hyattsville, Maryland, on Friday, in a move to highlight mental health challenges people face during the holidays.
Emhoff, who has previously spoken on the importance of mental health resources, thanked employees at the call center for their work during the holidays and acknowledged that this time of year can be tough for a lot of people.
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“I know that this work cannot be easy,” Emhoff told employees. “This is not a red state or blue state or a political issue. This issue of mental health and suicide affects everyone.”
Emhoff said he wanted to raise awareness of how easy and fast it can be to call the 988 hotline for any mental health-related issues instead of 911, which is reserved for emergency situations.
“Instead of calling 911 for an emergency, we need to get everyone to know that it’s 988 for any issue that revolve[s] around mental health or suicidal ideation or those feelings of being alone,” Emhoff said, noting that the average wait time on 988 calls is 32 seconds.
The Biden administration launched the 988 helpline in July, which is staffed with mental health counselors around the country. The helpline is designed to be as easy to remember as 911 and is available through phone calls and text messages. Eventually, officials hope to dispatch mental health crisis teams to people’s homes, but currently, counselors will talk to the person on the phone. The new system builds on the long-running suicide hotline, which is still operating.
The visit comes less than a week after the death of Stephen ‘tWitch’ Boss, who died by suicide on Tuesday. Boss worked as the former DJ and co-executive producer for The Ellen DeGeneres Show prior to the show’s conclusion. He was also a well-known dancer, who competed and later judged on So You Think You Can Dance.
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“We think it’s important that we shed light on the resources available to any American dealing with mental health challenges or emotional distress,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Thursday after commenting on Boss’s death.
Emhoff was joined by Health and Human Services Deputy Secretary Andrea Palm and Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use Miriam Delphin-Rittman on Friday.