The Iowa Concerns Hotline has seen a nearly 25 percent increase in calls over the past 12 months. Anyone in Iowa may call the hotline, but the round-the-clock service is primarily meant to answer questions about farm and agribusiness finances. Tammy Jacobs oversees the hotline for Iowa State University Extension. Jacobs says it appears commodity prices are creating stress, especially among family farming operations
.Last year’s launch of the nationwide 9-8-8 suicide hotline hasn’t really impacted the number of calls to the Iowa Concerns Hotline according to Jacobs.
The Iowa Concerns Hotline was launched in 1985, during the Farm Crisis. It was originally called the Rural Concerns Hotline, but the name was changed to Iowa Concerns Hotline after the floods of 1993 to indicate it’s not just for farmers. In the past 12 months, the Iowa Concerns Hotline fielded nearly 65-hundred calls. The conversations are kept confidential. Trained people answer the calls and make referrals to services that might help. An attorney is available to provide free legal education.
