Governor Andy Beshear announced in his weekly press conference that, according to Mental Health America, Kentucky is ranked No. 1 in the area of adult mental health.
Mental Health America collects data across all 50 states and releases its state rankings based on how many adults and youth have mental health and addiction issues and how many have access to health coverage.
“This ranking shows that the things we’ve been doing in Kentucky have been working,” said Gov. Beshear. “I am very proud of the work we have done in mental health care these past few years in the Commonwealth. But the work doesn’t stop. I will continue to push for mental health services so we can continue to keep our people happier, healthier and safer.”
The Governor also noted that this Sunday, July 16, will mark the one-year anniversary of the launch of the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline in Kentucky.
Since this free, confidential, 24/7 line launched, the state has seen a significant increase in call volume, text messages and chats, with a decrease in abandonment rates and speed to answer.
The Governor said that over 22,000 calls have been answered since last July, an increase of 22% compared to the prior 12-month period.
Currently, 81% of all calls are answered in-state at an average rate of 27 seconds, which is 5 seconds faster than the national average. There have been nearly 9,000 text messages and 9,000 online chats since the launch. And the volume for these methods of communication steadily grows each month.