The Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation

Loneliness can affect anyone, and for many people, a whole day can pass without a single real conversation.

In 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General declared an Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation. It is not confined to any one age or stage of life, but its effects fall especially hard on people who are already isolated: older adults living alone, people in recovery, and anyone whose daily sources of connection have thinned out. The underlying experience is the same: the connections that should happen on their own stop happening, and isolation builds quietly, day after day.

What the numbers show

Close friendships are thinning. The percentage of Americans who reported having only three or fewer close friends nearly doubled between 1990 and 2021, from 27% to 49%. (Survey Center on American Life, 2021)
Time with friends is collapsing. Daily time spent socializing with friends dropped from 60 minutes in 2003 to 20 minutes in 2020, and people aged 15 to 24 spent 70% less time with friends over the same period. (U.S. Surgeon General advisory, 2023)
Most adults feel it. 61% of U.S. adults reported feeling lonely in a survey of more than 10,000 participants. (Cigna, 2020)
Comparable to smoking. Lacking social connection can raise the risk of premature death by an amount comparable to smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day. (U.S. Surgeon General advisory, 2023)
Serious health consequences. For older adults, social isolation and loneliness are associated with about a 50% higher risk of dementia, a 32% higher risk of stroke, and a 29% higher risk of heart disease. (U.S. Surgeon General advisory, 2023)
Millions of older adults are affected. Nearly one-fourth of those aged 65 and older are considered socially isolated. (U.S. Surgeon General advisory, 2023)
Mental health is also at stake. People who frequently feel lonely are more than twice as likely to develop depression (Mann et al., 2022), and among older adults, cognitive decline progresses roughly 20% faster for those who are lonely (Donovan et al., 2017).
Even heart health is affected. For people with heart failure, high levels of loneliness are associated with a 68% increased risk of hospitalization and a 57% higher risk of emergency department visits. (Manemann et al., 2018)

The evidence points the same direction: regular social contact is protective, and the people who most need it are often the least able to reach it on their own.

How Crosstalk helps

We bring a daily, familiar voice within reach, so a person doesn't have to be the one to reach out first.

For someone who is isolated, the hardest part is making the call. Crosstalk removes that barrier: the system places the call, so all a person has to do is answer.

Pick a time. Choose a daily moment that works.
Crosstalk calls. At that time, the system calls you along with others who chose the same slot.
A one-on-one conversation. Whoever answers is connected into a private conversation with a supportive peer. No dialing, no phone tag.

Because the system makes the call, the daily conversation happens without asking an isolated person to take the hardest step alone. And it works for groups too: a club or a circle of friends can have Crosstalk ring everyone into a group voice or video call on a schedule, so the gathering happens without anyone stuck doing the organizing. The full mechanics, including the privacy rules and backup systems, are on the how it works page.

Built to reach people wherever they are

Free, and easy to join. Crosstalk works over a simple call. You can join by phone, and video is available as an option if you prefer it, but it is not required.
Simple to get started. Once you're set up, you pick a time that works for you and the calls come to you. This matters especially for those facing mobility challenges that make getting to a senior center, a club meeting, or coffee with a friend difficult.
Private, one-on-one and in groups. Real conversations, built with privacy-protective safeguards in mind.

Volunteer a familiar voice

Some of the best medicine for isolation is a person who shows up on schedule. Volunteers on Crosstalk do exactly that: younger volunteers become a regular voice for isolated older adults and disabled members, and the conversation is real on both ends of the line. If you'd like to volunteer an hour a week of your voice, we'd love to hear from you.

Bring Crosstalk to the people you serve

Healthcare providers, senior centers, treatment programs, community organizations, and family members can help someone get started, and the service is free to the people who use it. Clubs and community groups can also get their own circle on Crosstalk, so the friendships made at a weekly gathering can continue between gatherings, without anyone having to organize the calls. Think of the groups that already mean something: high school classmates seventy years on, a church circle, a monthly club call that survives today only because one dedicated person keeps organizing it and another sends out the notes. Crosstalk exists so those groups can outlive their organizers' energy.