Massachusetts Has a New Number: 211
Officials at the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency announced a bit of a change for area residents and visitors on Tuesday. In cooperation with the Council of Massachusetts United Ways, the organization has started operating a new emergency telephone number, namely 211.
One major point of the service is to decrease the number of non-emergency calls to the traditional emergency number 911. As a result of the new distinction, individuals who have inquiries about disaster, health, and human services issues can now get assistance from 211 operators between 8am and 8pm on weekdays. The service is also capable of 24-hour operation during major disasters.
The website for Massachusetts 2-1-1, as the service is formally called (or Mass 2-1-1 for short), clarifies that the statewide “information and referral line” also “[s]erves as a resource for finding government benefits and services, non-profit organizations, support groups, volunteer opportunities, donation programs, and other local resources.”
So, if you plan to visit or move to Boston in the future, make sure to remember that 211 is the number to dial to receive assistance with non-urgent matters before they become urgent. I just hope this doesn’t confuse the heck out of people unable to tell the difference between a personal crisis that could be helped by the people who staff 211 and a life-threatening emergency requiring immediate intervention from the people who staff 911. We’ll likely see the results of one observational study or another soon.
Learn more about Mass 2-1-1 and its purpose at the FAQ.
Tags: 211, boston, emergencies, emergency-calls, mass-211, massachusetts, massachusetts-211, new england, telephone-numbersRelated Stories
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