Suicide counselors for LGBTQ+ youth removed from hotline by Trump admin
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People attend the Trans Day of Visibility Rally hosted by the Christopher Street Project on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on March 31. Photo: Bryan Dozier/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images
The Trump administration will stop connecting LGBTQ+ youth in crisis who call 988 to the Trevor Project suicide hotline next month, the group said on Wednesday.
The big picture: This will limit callers' access to counselors trained in helping LGBTQ+ youth, as President Trump targets the group that is more than four times as likely to attempt suicide than peers.
- "Suicide prevention is about people, not politics," Trevor Project CEO Jaymes Black said in a Wednesday statement.
- "The administration's decision to remove a bipartisan, evidence-based service that has effectively supported a high-risk group of young people through their darkest moments is incomprehensible."
Zoom out: The Trump administration's policies have targeted the rights of transgender people, including during Pride Month.
- Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the Supreme Court upheld Tennessee's ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth.
- LGBTQ+ youth face elevated suicide risk, and gender-affirming care is considered life-saving care.
Zoom in: Previously, callers to the suicide hotline could dial 3 to be connected with counselors trained to support LGBTQ+ youth.
- The Press 3 option ran out of congressionally directed funding, a Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson told Axios on Wednesday.
State of play: The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) on Tuesday ordered the closure of the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline's LGBTQ+ Youth Specialized Services program effective July 17.
- "In 30 short days, this program that has provided life-saving services to more than 1.3 million LGBTQ+ young people will no longer be available for those who need it," Black said.
- In 2022, the Trevor Project began providing hotline services via the 988 hotline. Callers could request to be connected with counselors specifically trained to assist LGBTQ+ youth.
- "Everyone who contacts the 988 Lifeline will continue to receive access to skilled, caring, culturally competent crisis counselors who can help with suicidal, substance misuse, or mental health crises, or any other kind of emotional distress," SAMHSA said in a statement Tuesday.
Flashback: In April, a leaked budget proposal called for eliminating funding for LGBTQ+ youth crisis services.
By the numbers: The Trevor Project serves nearly half of the LGBTQ+ youth specialized services' contact volume.
- In 2024, the Trevor Project served more than 231,000 crisis contacts and supported nearly 250 crisis counselors and support staff.
- Since 2022, the lifeline has served more than 1.2 million crisis contacts.
Go deeper: LGBTQ+ youth face hurdles to care as politics mires mental health: New report
