FAQs
Calling 2-1-1 from business phone systems (74KB .pdf)
Downloadable fact sheet (51KB .pdf)
What is 2-1-1?
2-1-1 is the new national dialing code for free, 24-hour access to information about community resources. It is a one-stop source of information for people who don't know where to start when they need essential health and human services, from drug treatment to care for a child or aging parent.
2-1-1 will be deployed during disasters, centralizing myriad hotlines and providing an easily-memorized number for residents to call for help, information, to volunteer, or to make a donation. 2-1-1's powerful database can be searched online, in print, or by calling 2-1-1.
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Who calls 2-1-1?
2-1-1 is for everyone:
- Adult children seeking services for elderly parents
- People who want to donate time, money, or goods to a nonprofit organization
- Laid-off workers struggling to feed their families
- Disaster victims seeking loved ones, housing, food, counseling
- Teachers, clergy, and agency staff seeking help for their clients
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Who answers 2-1-1 calls?
In San Diego County, 2-1-1 service will be provided by INFO LINE of San Diego County, the region's comprehensive source for health and human services information and referral. INFO LINE/2-1-1's multilingual phone staff undergo lengthy professional training that prepares them to assess callers' needs and assist them with navigating a maze of human services agencies and programs.
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What are the community benefits of 2-1-1?
2-1-1 creates the community infrastructure for linking the disparate and sometimes duplicative services of myriad local nonprofits into a more efficient, coordinated network. Nonprofits and service organizations will receive fewer inappropriate requests for help, and their marketing dollars will be stretched by participation in 2-1-1.
2-1-1 San Diego continues to integrate a disaster response component into its core mission. We are built into the region’s disaster plans, both through the government and voluntary systems. We are now the first line provider of accurate information in the event of a public health emergency and will be the primary agency for evacuation information, disaster resources and rumor control. Having 2-1-1 as the centralized system for disaster information will aide emergency responders by allowing them to focus on emergency situations only. Non-emergency human service needs will be directed away from police dispatchers at 9-1-1, freeing up law enforcement resources.
Perhaps most important — from a humanitarian standpoint as well as an efficiency one — improved access to health services will reduce the likelihood that individuals might delay seeking and receiving treatment for conditions that could become more painful and costly to address — often at public expense — in the future.
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Do other states have 2-1-1?
Forty-one states, including California, have access to 2-1-1 service that reaches 196 million Americans - more than 65% of the population. All remaining 9 states are in the process of planning and developing community-based 2-1-1 service.
The first 2-1-1 system was started in Atlanta in 1997, followed by statewide service for Connecticut in 1999. After September 11, 2001, Connecticut's 2-1-1 system connected bereaved callers to services, fielded opportunities to donate or volunteer, and handled calls for the besieged Red Cross, demonstrating the central role 2-1-1 plays during a disaster.
The national planning initiative (www.211.org) is a joint project of the Alliance of Information and Referral Systems (AIRS) and the United Way of America.
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How many Californians have access to 2-1-1 dialing?
The California Public Utilities Commission, the state’s telecommunications regulatory authority, has granted operators permission to operate 2-1-1 in San Diego and 15 other counties – Alameda, Contra Costa, Kern, Los Angeles, Napa, Orange, Riverside, San Francisco, Santa Clara, Solano, Ventura, San Bernardino, Sacramento, Santa Barbara and Stanislaus. It is projected that 2-1-1 dialing will be available to 80% of Californians by the end of 2007.
Currently 2-1-1 is operating in nine California counties View CA Service Map. INFO LINE of San Diego County and sister agencies in five other Southern California counties launched the 2-1-1 service the same time in mid-2005, followed by three additional counties in mid-2006 and early-2007.
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How do agencies get listed on 2-1-1?
We thoroughly research all of the programs listed in our database. If you would like to have a program added to the database, or if you see a correction that is needed, please write to our Resource Center.
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How much will 2-1-1 cost?
Nationwide, 2-1-1 service costs an estimated $1 per capita per year. In San Diego County, with almost 3 million residents, that means about $3 million once the service is fully built out in 2010.
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Who is paying for 2-1-1?
2-1-1 San Diego's foundin funders include The First 5 Commission of San Diego County, the County of San Diego, San Diego Gas & Electric and United Way of San Diego County. Their continuous support of the sevice makes 2-1-1 a true community effort reflecting private, public and nonprofit partnerships. Our new major partners have also been instrumental in providing significant funding to support various 2-1-1 projects. New funding partners include the Weingart-Price Fund at the San Diego Foundation, Kaiser Permanente, the County Office of Emergency Services, and County Public Health Services,.
The bipartisan Calling for 2-1-1 Act, authored by Senators Clinton and Dole, would authorize a 50% federal match of $150 million for 2-1-1 development and service in communities nationwide. On the local level, 2-1-1 is actively soliciting additional partners and support from foundations, individuals and corporations.
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