Maryland Behavioral Health Crisis Response System – Integration of 9–8–8 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline Network and Outcome Evaluations

HB 1146 requires Maryland's crisis communication centers to coordinate with the 9-8-8 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline Network to provide services like supportive counseling, suicide prevention, crisis intervention, and referrals. It mandates that each jurisdiction's crisis system evaluate outcomes using specific data points, including 9-8-8 call volume, resolution rates, mobile crisis team dispatches, and discharge data. The bill also requires annual public reporting of this data - disaggregated by race, gender, age, and zip code - to inform policy improvements aimed at reducing criminal detention and enhancing community crisis diversion. This directly affects all Maryland crisis communication centers and their coordination with the 9-8-8 network.