by Jack Bragen
Editor’s note: This op-ed includes a time-sensitive call to action. If you or someone you know needs this service, the toll-free number is included in this column.
As I listened to the news on my transistor radio the other day, I discovered with alarm that the state might cut funding to the California Warm Line as of July 1, 2025. I have relied on its non-emergency emotional support from its peer counselors for several months.
The San Francisco Examiner also reports that Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposed state budget in January did not include funding to the Mental Health Association of San Francisco (MHA-SF) to run the warm line, and that Newsom must meet a critical May 14 deadline to revise his budget plan for next year.
As you might gather, I am not just a writer of mental health, commentary and fiction. I am a mentally ill man in my 60s who relies heavily on numerous mental health services. I also live alone and experience insomnia. When I call the Warm Line late at night, it improves my ability to sleep. It’s especially essential when something upsets me or when I haven’t had anyone to speak to in a while.
The Warm Line prevents people from escalating from a point of distress to a point of crisis where life and limb is endangered. Compassionate volunteers staff the Warm Line. In an interview with KRON4, MHA-SF executive director Mark Salazar estimated that the number of calls jumped from an annual total of 20,000 last year to 40,000 per month in the last three months alone. There’s a clear demand for this service, which has a significant impact on people’s lives.
The association is moving people to ask for restored funding by asking them to contact the governor and select lawmakers and sharing the hashtag #SaveCAWarmLine on social media.
I was almost prompted to call the Warm Line today because of a pointless call I received from my health plan, which crashed my mood. But I didn’t call only because I already had other counseling earlier that day.
This was nothing compared with last year I called the national 988 crisis line. After I separated from my wife, I made repeated calls sobbing into the phone.
To my horror and offendedness, one or two of the recipients of my 988 calls came across (at least to me, subjectively) as law enforcement personnel, in how they dealt with me. I picked that up because of their word choices in the questions they asked, as well as the direction in which they steered the conversation. Even though I initiated the call, I felt like they were grilling me like a suspect.
After such scenarios took place a couple of times, I was far more cautious about calling 988. I just called less often. After more than a month, they gave me the number to the California Warm Line.
These services are not just a sound bite in the news. They have a real impact on people’s lives. When a government cuts a social service, it is not just something to note in the news and shrug; in many instances, human suffering increases.
After the aforesaid scenario took place a couple of times, I was far more cautious about calling 988. But when I felt that I truly needed the help, I continued to call–I just called less often. After more than a month of my frequent calls to the 988-crisis line, I was given a phone number for the California Warm Line.
If California cuts funding to the Warm Line, human suffering and loneliness will increase, shifting distress calls to 988. The Warm Line is cost effective, compared with the costs of emergency systems. Last year alone, this resource prevented 14,400 emergency room visits and saved state taxpayers $93 million. Calling the Warm Line itself is free of charge.
The California Warm Line has changed the direction of my life for the better, it has vastly increased my quality of life, and it has helped me get through a very difficult phase in life.
The decision lies in the hands of the State Legislature and Governor of California. Save the California Warm Line by going to savethewarmline.org. The site includes contact information for key lawmakers and talking points you can make. The mental health and lives of several Californians depend on it.
People in California can call or text the Warm Line at 855-600-WARM (9276). Lines are open 24/7, and English- and Spanish-speaking staff are available, as well as a third-party interpretation service that offers over 240 additional languages.
