Missouri State Representative Tricia Byrnes is reaffirming her commitment to strengthening Missouri’s 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline after witnessing alarming deficiencies in the system firsthand. House Bill (HB) 1148’s legislation aims to address these failures by ensuring that crisis counselors offer real and effective assistance to those in need.Last week, Byrnes tested the 988 system as part of a fact-finding effort to assess its functionality. She considers what she found deeply concerning.“I initiated this test to see how well the system responds to individuals in crisis,” Byrnes. “What I found was nothing short of a catastrophic failure. The responses I received were cold and robotic and appeared to come from AI chatbots rather than trained crisis counselors. This is unacceptable. If someone in immediate distress were to reach out expecting real help, they might not get it – and that could cost lives.”HB 1148 aims to revamp...