The Department of Health and Human Services proposed 2026 budget, released on Friday, June 6, excludes some suicide hotline services for LGBTQ+ young people. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)AP
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' projected 2026 budget eliminates some suicide hotline services for LGBTQ+ youth and young adults.
The proposed budget, released on June 6, sets aside $520 million for the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, NBC News reported.
But officials aim to stop government funding for LGBTQ+ specific counseling for 988 callers previously provided when requested, NBC News reported.
Rachel Cauley, a spokesperson for the White House’s Office of Management and Budget, told NBC News that, as in previous years, the projected budget will still provide the same funding for 988 services.
“It does not, however, grant taxpayer money to a chat service where children are encouraged to embrace radical gender ideology by ‘counselors’ without consent or knowledge of their parents,” Cauley told NBC News.
Still, advocates are concerned.
“If this goes through, and this vital program is eliminated, there will be lethal consequences and millions of LGBTQ+ young people in the country (will) lose access to a proven life-saving resource,” Mark Henson, director of federal advocacy and government affairs at The Trevor Project, told NJ Spotlight News.
According to statistics from The Trevor Project — a national suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ+ youth — LGBTQ+ young people are more than four times as likely to attempt suicide than their peers.
The Trevor Project’s 2023 national mental health survey found that 41% of LGBTQ+ young people seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year, including roughly half of transgender and nonbinary youth.
The 988 national hotline offers one-on-one support for mental health, suicide and substance use-related issues for anyone, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)
As a 24/7 service, people in need can call or text 988 anywhere in the United States to receive help from a crisis counselor. Callers can also chat online with a counselor by visiting 988’s website, according to SAMHSA’s website.
In 2020, President Donald Trump signed the “National Suicide Hotline Designation Act,” making 988 a new lifeline number. The hotline was formerly known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, NBC News reported.
As part of the legislation, 988 was required to offer LGBTQ+ youth and young adult callers access to specially trained staff due to the high rates of suicide among LGBTQ+ youth, NBC News reported.
Advocates insist the resources are needed.
“LGBTQ+ youth specifically are at an increased risk for suicide,” Elizabeth Clemens, the executive director for the New Jersey chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, told NJ Spotlight News. “Ultimately, we need more resources, not fewer.”
Stories by Vashti Harris
Mosaic staff writer Vashti Harris can be reached at vharris@njadvancemedia.com.
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