On July 17, a federal agency’s website announced that the 988 National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline will no longer offer LGBTQ+ youth and young adults specialized support options.
LGBTQ+ advocates are alarmed by the decision, which foreshadows the Trump administration’s 2026 budget proposal to reduce funding for 988’s LGBTQ+ youth and young adult services.
Since its launch in September 2022, the LGBTQ+ youth program has served almost 1.3 million callers, according to federal data. The services could be accessed by texting back “PRIDE” or by pressing the “Press 3” button on the phone.
In a statement posted on its website on Tuesday, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced that it had decided to “no longer silo” the services and “to focus on serving all help seekers, including those previously served through the Press 3 option.”
The U.S. Supreme Court upheld Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for transgender minors on Wednesday, coinciding with the news of the LGBTQ+ service closing.
According to the Trevor Project, formal notice of the program’s termination was given to it on Tuesday. The nonprofit serves almost half of the people who call the lifeline and is one of seven centers offering 988 crisis support services for LGBTQ+ individuals.
In a statement released on Wednesday, Trevor Project CEO Jaymes Black stated that “suicide prevention is about people, not politics.” It is inexplicable that the administration decided to eliminate a bipartisan, evidence-based program that has successfully helped a high-risk group of youths get through their most trying times.
SAMHSA mentioned the “LGB+ youth services” in its statement regarding the 988 ruling.
Black referred to the removal of the “T” that stands for transgender individuals as “callous.” He declared, “Transgender people can never, and will never, be erased.”
The Trevor Project and other organizations will continue to provide round-the-clock mental health support services, and 988 leaders say the hotline will treat callers with compassion.
According to preliminary data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were 49,300 suicides in 2023, which is roughly the highest number in the country’s history.
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LGBTQ+ youth are more likely to commit suicide, according to studies.
For example, a 2024 CDC analysis revealed that 26% of transgender and gender-questioning students attempted suicide in the previous year. This is in contrast to 11% of cisgender female students and 5% of cisgender male students.
Following President Donald Trump’s reelection, young transgender people called crisis hotlines in droves. Trump emphasized anti-transgender themes throughout his campaign and has since rescinded access to gender-affirming care and numerous civil rights protections.
In October 2020, Trump signed the National Suicide Hotline Designation Act of 2020 into law.
