Senate OKs 988 crisis hotline bill

In a 27-22 vote, the Washington state Senate passed a bill Monday during a virtual debate to strengthen the state’s behavioral health crisis response and suicide prevention services.

House Bill 1477 would require the state Department of Health and the Health Care Authority to create crisis call center hubs, as well as an enhanced crisis response system, to implement the 988 crisis hotline.

The House passed HB 1477 on March 17 in a 78-18 vote. The bill will return to the House to consider the Senate’s amendments.

In October 2020, Congress adopted the National Suicide Hotline Designation Act of 2020, which designated 988 as the phone number people can use to access the National Suicide Prevention and Mental Health Crisis Hotline, according to the bill’s text.

Sen. Manka Dhingra, D-Redmond, said during the debate HB 1477, which would create a comprehensive behavioral health crisis response system, is critically needed in the state.

“The options available to people right now are to call 911,” Dhingra said. “This (bill) gives an alternative that will save lives.”

Under HB 1477, a tax would be placed on “radio access lines, voiceover internet protocol service lines and switched access lines purchased or subscribed to by state residents of $0.30 per line per month beginning Oct. 1, 2021, and increasing to $0.50 on Jan. 1, 2023,” according to the bill’s text.

Sen. Keith Wagoner, R-Sedro-Woolley, said during the debate charging Washingtonians through HB 1477 is not the right approach.

“I find the regressivity of this (bill) a little bit dumbfounding (and) that this is how we want to fix behavioral health,” Wagoner said.

Sen. Mark Mullet, D-Issaquah, had an amendment that would reduce the tax on radio access lines, voiceover internet protocol service lines and switched access lines to $0.24 per month starting Oct. 1 and to $0.40 per month starting Jan. 1, 2023. It was adopted to the bill.

Sen. Mark Schoesler, R-Ritzville, voiced support for Mullet’s amendment and said the Legislature’s budget should be able to withstand not getting the proposed tax rate in the bill.

“I believe that in a $59 billion budget, the good chair and ranking minority member could certainly find something less important to the people of the state of Washington that could take a little bit of a haircut to do something so important,” Schoesler said.

During the afternoon session, the Senate also passed these bills:

• SB 5195 (49-0): Requires a hospital emergency department to provide opioid overdose reversal medication to a patient upon discharge if the patient has symptoms of an opioid use disorder. The bill will head to the governor’s desk.

• SB 5227 (32-17): Establishes programs on diversity, equity, inclusion and antiracism for faculty, staff and students at public institutions of higher education. The bill will head to the governor’s desk.

• SB 5190 (37-12): Permits health care workers who left work to quarantine in the midst of a public health emergency to be eligible for unemployment insurance benefits. The bill will head to the governor’s desk.