Senate Dems press HHS over cuts to suicide lifeline’s LGBTQ+ youth program
U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) speaks during a news conference on Senate Republican’s Budget Resolution legislation at the U.S. Capitol on April 03, 2025 in Washington, DC. Baldwin led a letter May 7 calling for HHS to explain planned cuts to the suicide lifeline's LGBTQ+ youth program. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
A leaked HHS FY26 budget proposal includes a measure to defund the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline’s LGBTQ+ Youth Specialized Services pilot program.
A group of Senate Democrats are pressing the Department of Health and Human Services to reconsider defunding the LGBTQ+ youth suicide and crisis hotline as part of its fiscal year 2026 budget.
In a May 7-dated letter to HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., seven lawmakers — led by Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wisc. — wrote that the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline’s LGBTQ+ Youth Specialized Services pilot program “provides lifesaving services to LGBTQ+ youth, who face a higher risk of significant mental health challenges and barriers to receiving care than their peers.”
A 2024 survey conducted by The Trevor Project that was cited in the senators’ letter found that 39% of LGBTQ+ respondents “seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year.” The proposal to slash the LGBTQ+ youth suicide and crisis hotline, however, comes as the Trump administration continues to purge programs related to various diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility programs across the federal government.
A leaked HHS budget proposal reviewed by NPR last month included cutting funding for the LGBTQ+-focused hotline, along with other programs — such as Head Start — that were placed on the chopping block. The White House’s FY26 budget request is a plan outlining funding priorities, and it remains up to Congress to approve the final budget.
The three-digit 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline was launched in 2022 and is overseen by the Department of Health and Human Services’ Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The lifeline is available 24/7 to those living in all U.S. states and territories and provides individuals experiencing mental health crises with the opportunity to call, text or chat with trained counselors. The 988 lifeline has received more than 14.5 million crisis contacts since its inception.
The LGBTQ+ Youth Specialized Services pilot program was launched in 2022 as a more specialized resource for those under the age of 25 seeking assistance. 988 subsequently announced in March 2023 that it was making the hotline accessible 24/7, with a dedicated “plus 3” option to connect LGBTQ+ youth with counselors specifically trained to support that population.
The Veterans Crisis Line, which is also targeted toward a population that experiences higher rates of suicide than the general public, uses a 988 “plus 1” option to provide more streamlined care for retired servicemembers.
The senators wrote in their letter that the LGBTQ+ youth suicide and crisis hotline has received over 1.2 million crisis contacts since its creation, with Congress increasing the programs’s allocated funding “from $7.2 million for the pilot to $33.1 million in fiscal year 2024 on a bipartisan basis.”
“Given the Administration has claimed addressing youth mental health as a priority, elimination of specialized services specifically designed for at-risk youth is irresponsible,” the letter said. “We urge you to reconsider and support continued funding for the program.”
Although the budget proposal from HHS calls for defunding the specialized hotline for LGBTQ+ youth, lawmakers in both chambers of Congress have undertaken a bipartisan effort to shore up the cybersecurity of the overall 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline to prevent it from being disrupted by future cyber incidents.
The cyber-focused effort, however, also comes as SAMHSA — the agency overseeing 988 — has seen its workforce shrink as a result of cuts conducted under the guidance of the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency. Lawmakers and former SAMHSA officials previously told Nextgov/FCW that they believed the staffing cuts would harm the lifeline’s effectiveness.
The senators used their letter to also express general concerns about how HHS is continuing to support the lifeline, writing that “despite the requirement for an operating plan for fiscal year 2025, HHS has provided no information about how or whether it plans to use funds for specialized services or the 988 Suicide Lifeline in general.”
In addition to Baldwin, the letter was signed by Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Ed Markey, D-Mass., Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., Ron Wyden, D-Ore., Alex Padilla, D-Calif., and Jack Reed, D-R.I.