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The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline adds nationwide ASL services for Deaf and Hard of Hearing callers
UPMC Health Plan·Psychiatry·Provider Announcement
We identified it
Aug 7, 2026
Summary
The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline has expanded to include nationwide American Sign Language (ASL) services for Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and related populations. Callers can access ASL-trained counselors via 988lifeline.org or by calling 1-800-273-TALK (8255) from a videophone, with direct dialing to 988 from videophone coming soon. This is an informational announcement about expanded mental health crisis services and does not create new billing or coding requirements for healthcare providers.
Action Required
No action required for the billing team. This policy change announces expanded 988 Lifeline accessibility services funded and operated by the national crisis hotline network, not by individual healthcare practices. Providers may reference this information when counseling patients about mental health crisis resources, but this does not affect billing workflows, coding, prior authorization, or claim submission processes.