A new service added to the 988 Lifeline will offer suicide prevention and mental health crisis counseling through American Sign Language for people who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing without the need for an interpreter.

Indiana has led the country for nearly a year in the percentage of calls to the 988 hotline answered in-state.

Hundreds of Hoosiers rallied at the New Direction Church in Indianapolis Saturday to urge lawmakers to fully fund Senate Bill 1, which would bolster mental health care access and services across the state.

Hoosiers having a mental health crisis can call 988 to be connected with a trained specialist. People who need help with behavioral health issues, including substance use, can also receive help.

The launch of 988 is something thats been celebrated as a long-time need by mental health advocates and law enforcement agents. But rolling out the service is proving to be complicated.

In Illinois, providers hope the Living Room model will help fill the gap in mental health services, as the nations new mental health crisis number, 988, rolls out this month.

Advocates are hopeful the three-digit mental health crisis number, 988, will make it easier for people to reach out for help starting July 16. But some worry about states where crisis call centers already struggle to keep up with demand.

The state’s goal is to get 90 percent of calls to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline from Indiana answered by in-state crisis counselors by 2023.

The United States' new national mental health crisis line, 988, is going live on July 16. The new 3-digit hotline is supposed to make it easy for people struggling with addiction, suicide and mental illness to get help fast. But with just weeks to go, hundreds of positions remain unfilled.