The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline’s specialized services for LGBTQ+ youth will no longer be operation starting July 17, according to a statement from the US Department of Health and Human Services’ Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
Theadministration said in its statementthat everyone who contacts the 988 lifeline will continue to receive access to crisis counselors who can help with suicidal, substance misuse or mental health crises, or any other kind of emotional distress, but there will no longer be the LGBTQ+ specialized services.
Soon after its launch in July 2022, the 988 Lifeline included asubnetwork for LGBTQ+ individualsto connect with specialized services, in which people dialing 988 are given theoption to press 3to reach crisis counselors trained to work with LGBTQ+ youth and adults under 25.
According to thelatest data from SAMHSA, more than 14.5 million people have called, texted or sent chats to the 988 Lifeline and have been transferred to a crisis contact center since July 2022. Nearly 1.3 million of those were routed to the LGBTQ+ specialized service.
“On July 17, the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline will no longer silo LGB+ youth services, also known as the ‘Press 3 option,’ to focus on serving all help seekers, including those previously served through the Press 3 option,”SAMHSA’s statementsaid Tuesday.
“The Press 3 option was established as a pilot program in Fiscal Year 2022 under a government agreement with a third party. The Fiscal Year 2023 Omnibus included a Congressional directive for $29.7 million to fund the specialized services. Federal funding in FY24 for the Press 3 services increased to $33 million,” the statement said. “As of June 2025, more than $33 million in funds have been spent to support the subnetworks, fully expending the monies allocated for 988 Lifeline LGB+ subnetwork services.”
In October 2020, President DonaldTrump signeda bipartisan billmaking 988 the universal telephone number to reach the national suicide prevention hotline.
About two years later, the988 Suicide & Crisis Lifelinelaunched under the Biden administration, transitioning what was a 10-digit number to an easier-to-remember three-digit number. People seeking emotional and mental health support can dial 988 for help in the same way they might dial 911 for medical emergencies.
Since 2022, the federal government has invested some$1.5 billion in the 988 project, including expanding access to services for Spanish speakers, LGBTQ+ youth and young adults, and people who are deaf or hard of hearing by creating sub-lifelines or sub-networks for those groups.
This month, the Trump administration officially proposed to eliminate the 988 Lifeline’s LGBTQ+ youth services inbudget plans for fiscal year 2026. While some supporters of the move may view it as an efficient way to save spending, critics have called it “deeply upsetting.”
“It is deeply upsetting to see the administration reverse course on an evidence-backed, bipartisan program that has successfully provided life-saving crisis care to 1.3 million LGBTQ+ young people, and counting,” Jaymes Black, CEO of the nonprofitThe Trevor Project, said in anews releaselast week when the proposed budget was posted.
The Trevor Project, a suicide prevention organization for LGBTQ+ youth, has been a subcontractor to the specialized service since 2022, serving as one of seven call centers.
“We are grateful to the many people who continue to urge this administration and Congress to protect access to these life-saving services alongside us. In a nation where our children’s tears fall without distinction of how they identify, we must rise with one voice – across every faith, every belief, and every political line – now is the time for the full volume of our conviction,” Black said in part. “Now is the time to act.”
Some Democratic lawmakers have spoken out against retiring 988’s specialized services for LGBTQ+ youth, including Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin. She said in a statement Wednesday that the Trump administration’s plan to cut the specialized services comes at a time when it is estimated thatnearly 40% of LGBTQ+ young people have reported seriously considering attempting suicidein the past year.
In 2019, Baldwin, along with Senators Cory Gardner (R-CO), Jerry Moran (R-KS) and Jack Reed (D-RI),introduced the legislationto designate a three-digit phone number for a national suicide prevention and mental health crisis hotline.
“I worked hard to stand up a special line for LGBTQ+ youth because we are losing too many of our kids to suicide, and it’s well past time we did something about it. Children facing dark times and even contemplating taking their life often have nowhere else to turn besides this 988 Lifeline, and the Trump Administration is cruelly and needlessly taking that away,” Baldwin said in the statement.
“During Pride Month, a time to celebrate the progress we’ve made, the Trump Administration is taking us a step back and telling LGBTQ+ kids that they don’t matter and don’t deserve help when they are in crisis,” Baldwin said. “This is not the final chapter of this story, and I’ll fight tooth and nail to protect these children.”