Suicide is a public health crisis. If you or anyone you know is in crisis, the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline can be reached by calling or texting 988. More information can be found here.
From the Buckeyes and the Bearcats to Dolly Parton, Ohio has more than 300 license plates collecting money for various causes. The state is adding another to that lengthy list.
Some specialized plates sell by the hundreds and others by the tens of thousands, according to the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles. The newest specialized plate will promote 988, the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, with $25 from each purchase benefitting the Ohio Suicide Prevention Foundation.
“We lose about five Ohioans a day to suicide, and we see approximately 25 folks come into our emergency rooms every day in Ohio with a suicide attempt,” Executive Director Tony Coder said Tuesday. “The need is great and we must be there to meet the needs of the thousands of families we work with every year.”
The proceeds from the plates, Coder said, will fund suicide prevention programming targeting young Ohioans.
Still, Gov. Mike DeWine said Tuesday the hotline itself is absent a long-term funding source, since the proceeds from the plates don’t directly go to 988 services.
“If we could have a dedicated fund, sure, that would be that would be great, but without that, I have great confidence that the legislature will continue to fund [the lifeline],” DeWine said.
The three-digit version of the hotline launched nationwide three years ago. Ohio has 19 call centers that field almost 99% of calls and texts to 988 in the state, according to DeWine’s office. A small number roll over to a national 988 service.
DeWine asked in the budget for lawmakers to send some cannabis revenue to the lifeline. Instead, House lawmakers redirected revenue to the Ohio General Revenue Fund.
Under House Bill 96, the legislature’s version of the budget, the House allocates about $30 million less to 988 services than DeWine requested, according to analysis by the Legislative Service Commission.
