Phone Number Begins with 337-988? You’ll Need to Dial a 1 in Oct
Beginning at the end of October, residents with a 337 and 504 prefix to their phone number will have to be reached by adding a 1 in front of their phone number. The change is coming due to a new way to contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. The service is transitioning over from a 1-800 number to a much easier number. 988 will now be the quick and easy number to contact the hotline from any phone. If someone were to dial your 988 number after the transition in October, they would immediately be calling the hotline and not you. The addition of the number 1 will tell the phone service that you are indeed dialing a seven-digit number and not the hotline.
The news comes from the Louisiana Office of State Fire Marshal. They posted the information that you will need to know in order to handle this new change.
The official transition for the 10-digit number will begin on October 24, 2021. It is suggested to update all of your emergency contact numbers using the 10-digit code by adding the number 1 to it. The new hotline number 988 will officially be implemented on July 16, 2022. Until then, if you need to reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, you can still dial 1-800-273-8255. That phone number will also continue to be in place after the implementation of the 988 number as well.