Beginning on Sunday, callers in nine California area codes will be required to use 10-digit dialing when making phone calls.
The new rules, which will affect thousands of California residents, are the result of federal legislation that will make it simpler for callers to contact crisis assistance.
To complete their connections, callers who have a 988 exchange or “central office code” — the first three digits of a seven-digit phone number — must dial the area code of the wanted number first and then the remaining seven digits.
In July 2020, the Federal Communications Commission ordered that 988 be implemented as the new national three-digit phone number for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. To help make the transition easier, 82 area codes across the United States will convert to 10-digit dialing.
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, which is accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week at (800) 272-8255, currently connects to 180 crisis centers across the country.
According to the FCC, the modifications “will assist in ensuring widespread deployment of 988, lowering stigma surrounding suicide and mental health crises, and ultimately saving lives.”
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The following area codes in California will transition to 10-digit dialing:
209: The downtown area of Stockton, as well as Modesto and the adjacent areas
530: The Sacramento Valley, Shasta Cascade, and the northern Sierra Nevada are among the many subtropical areas of northern California.
562: Long Beach and surrounding areas in Orange County
626: San Gabriel Valley and surrounding area
650: San Mateo County and part of Santa Clara County, including Palo Alto
707: Vallejo, San Pablo, and Benicia, three major cities on the northern California coast.
925: The East Bay and parts of Alameda County are included in this region.
949: Southern Orange County
951: Riverside and San Bernardino counties
Residents in area codes that include all ten digits will have to dial the entire number for every call. This also includes the local numbers you call daily. Calls made using only seven digits will not be completed as you will be instructed to hang up and try again using the correct 10-digit format.
Also, callers must manually add a 1 before the three-digit area code, whether they’re phoning from landlines or mobile phones. Most cellphones already add a 1 before a dialed area code by default.
The dialing shortcut for the lifeline, which was originally announced in March and will be implemented this weekend, will not become functional until July 16. Callers who dial 988 will be automatically connected to the suicide-prevention hotline at that time.
These California area codes will require 10-digit dialing starting Sunday