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People living in the 562, 626, 949 and 951 area codes — and that includes you Long Beach, Pasadena, South Orange County and parts of Riverside and San Bernardino — now must dial all 10 digits to make a local call.
That’s your area code plus the phone number and that's even if you are just calling your next door neighbor. The change went into effect today (aka Sunday, Oct. 24).
It’s a little confusing, so bear with us. The Federal Communications Commission ordered this change because a new national crisis line has been created for suicide prevention.
That line will use a short cut number: 988. That 988 shortcut goes into effect in July.
Now it just so happens that a lot of folks in the affected area codes have numbers that start with — you guessed it — 988.
And because we don’t want to have a lot of people inadvertently calling the crisis line, it's just better that everyone starts dialing your area code before the rest of the number you're trying to reach.
Yes, many of you are probably accustomed to just hitting a number in your contacts. That means you should also double check that you have area numbers stored for all you frequently dialed numbers.
If you or someone you know, needs mental health right now, we have some resources you can use:
Steinberg Institute website, links to mental health resources and care throughout California
Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health, 24/7 Access Line 1-800-854-7771, links to COVID-19 information.
The Crisis Text Line, Text "HOME" (741-741) to reach a trained crisis counselor.
California Psychological Association Find a Psychologist Locator
Psychology Today guide to therapist
If You Need Immediate Help
If you or someone you know is in crisis and need immediate help, call the Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255or go here for online chat.
For more help:
Find 5 Action Steps for helping someone who may be suicidal, from the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.
Six questions to ask to help assess the severity of someone's suicide risk, from the Columbia Lighthouse Project.
To prevent a future crisis, here's how to help someone make a safety plan.
