Farmers Forum staff
OTTAWA — A national 9-8-8 suicide prevention line recently went into service in Canada.
Since Nov. 30, people from across the country have been able to call and text 9-8-8 to speak with appropriately trained responders who listen without judgment.
The free, confidential service is aimed at anyone with suicidal thoughts or worried about someone they know — but no caller is turned away. The new initiative follows the same model and three-digit number deployed since 2022 in the U.S.
The Canadian version is led by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) and ties into a network of 39 existing crisis and help lines across Canada. Federal taxpayers will contribute $156 million to the program over three years.
