Starting Oct. 24, some Wisconsin residents will be required to type in a 10-digit dialing code in order to connect to local and long-distance calls.
The FCC said the change comes as the new 988 dialing code to contact the National Suicide Prevention Line will go into effect July 16.
All customers with area codes 262, 414, 608, and 920 will need to dial the area code and telephone number to connect to local and long-distance calls. This applies to all calls that are currently dialed with seven digits.
The FCC says to ensure that 988 calls reach the suicide prevention hotline, 36 states, including Wisconsin, must transition to 10-digit dialing systems.
Calls made on or after Oct. 24 without the 10-digit dialing code will not go through.
Nothing changes for those residents (543 and 715) who are already using the 10 digit system.
According to the FCC, the 10-digit dialing requirement will not change:
- A customer’s telephone number, including current area code;
- The price of a call, coverage area, or other rates and services;
- A local call will remain a local call regardless of the number of digits dialed;
- Customers will continue to dial 1+ the area code + telephone number for all long-distance calls;
- Customers will continue to dial a prefix (such as “9”) when dialing from a multi-line telephone system (e.g., in a hotel, office building, etc.) as required;
- Customers can still dial three digits to reach 711 (relay services) and 911 (emergency services);
- If 211, 311, 411, 511, 611, or 811 are currently available in a community, customers can continue to dial these codes with just three digits; and
- The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline can still be reached by dialing 1-800-273-TALK (8255) even after the ‘988’ code is in effect.
For more information, click here.
