The Trump administration has halted targeted suicide prevention services for LGBTQ+ youth on the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
As of last week, programming that connected callers under the age of 25 with LGBTQ-trained counselors with the press of a button is no longer available.
The announcement that specialized services would be shuttered came from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration last month. The agency said it would "no longer silo LGB+ youth services" – leaving out the "T" which represents transgender individuals – and would instead "focus on serving all help seekers."
The administration has not made changes to a similar initiative that allows veterans and service members to reach specialized support.
The 988 Lifeline launched in July 2022, two years after President Donald Trump signed the National Suicide Hotline Designation Act, which made 988 the universal number for the national suicide prevention line. The bipartisan legislation noted LGBTQ youth are "more than 4 times more likely to contemplate suicide than their peers." It recommended the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration "be equipped to provide specialized resources" to high-risk populations.
LGBTQ+ specialized services were added to the hotline later in October 2022, and the hotline received between $29.7 million and $33 million annually, according to the federal mental health administration.
Since its launch, the service has received nearly 1.5 million contacts from LGBTQ+ youth and young adults seeking support. Its usage has also nearly tripled in the same period.
The 988 website still lists LGBTQ+ communities as "disproportionately at risk for suicide and other mental health struggles because of historic and ongoing structural violence."
The latest data from the Trevor Project shows almost 40% of LGBTQ+ young people considered attempting suicide in 2023, including nearly half of transgender and nonbinary young people.
Hailey Briggs, the Executive Director of Oklahomans for Equality, said many local members of the queer community are feeling frustrated and worried.
"It's heartbreaking for our community," Briggs said. "You don't have to do a lot of digging in the data to find that, when we think about the groups that are most at risk for suicide, it's queer youth."
She said it's important, in the face of changes, that the queer community and its allies come together. Briggs said services still exist, in Oklahoma and nationally.
"There are organizations and individuals doing work within the community to bring queer youth together to create spaces of wellbeing," she said. "And if there are queer youth who are struggling with that, we want you here, we want you to give us a call. We want you to come into our programs."
National 2SLGBTQIA+ crisis lines
The Trevor Project – (866) 488-7386
Trans Lifeline – (877) 565-8860
LGBT National Hotline – (888) 843-4564
The LGBT National Youth Talkline – (800) 246-7743
Oklahoma 2SLGBTQIA+ organizations and resources
Oklahomans for Equality (OKEQ)
PFLAG Oklahoma City
Diversity Center of Oklahoma (Oklahoma City)
Mental Health Association Oklahoma
Freedom Oklahoma
This report was produced by the Oklahoma Public Media Exchange, a collaboration of public media organizations. Help support collaborative journalism by donating at the link at the top of this webpage.
