Last week, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approved
rules that will require all U.S. wireless carriers to
implement georouting for calls to the 988 Suicide and Crisis
Lifeline. These rules
will facilitate access to the 988 Lifeline’s critical local
intervention services by requiring wireless providers to
implement georouting solutions for 988 calls to route wireless
calls to local crisis centers based on the geographic area
associated with the origin of a 988 call rather than by area code
and exchange, while protecting the privacy needs of the caller.
In June, CSAC submitted public
comment to the FCC in support of the
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that received final
approval last week.
The FCC also approved a Further NPRM that proposes rules
requiring covered text providers, including wireless providers,
to support georouting to ensure that the 988 Lifeline may route
covered 988 text messages to the appropriate local crisis center
to enhance the support and resources available to text users in
crisis. In addition, it proposes to require covered text
providers to send georouting data to the 988 Lifeline to the same
extent that they are required to send covered 988 texts to the
Lifeline. Lastly, this proposal suggests an implementation
deadline of six months from the effective date of final rules for
covered text providers to comply with the proposed text-to-988
georouting requirements.
