Bipartisan House coalition demands RFK Jr. reverse Trump's plan to end LGBTQ+ suicide prevention hotline
A bipartisan group of U.S. House lawmakers is urging Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to block the Trump administration's plan to eliminate the LGBTQ+ youth services within the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline—an emergency support network that has served more than 1.3 million contacts since its full implementation in 2023.
Keep up with the latest in + news and politics.
The Wednesday letter, signed by Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi, a Democrat from Illinois, New York Republican Michael Lawler, Massachusetts Democrat Seth Moulton, and Brian Fitzpatrick, a Republican from Pennsylvania, calls on Kennedy to stop a 30-day phaseout announced by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration on June 17. According to internal agency guidance, the LGBTQ+-specific branch of the hotline, which allows callers to 'press 3' to connect with affirming counselors, is set to be dismantled by July 17, according to SAMHSA.
Related: Advocates and health experts worry Trump's suicide prevention hotline cuts will increase LGBTQ+ youth deaths
'This is not some kind of hotline set by a liberal Democratic administration,' Krishnamoorthi said in an interview with The Advocate Thursday morning. 'It was actually signed into law by President Trump. Various Republicans in the Senate and the House supported it.'
Since the line became fully operational in 2023, he noted, 'it has received an astonishing 1.3 million calls, texts, and other forms of communication' and was 'averaging 2,900 contacts every day' as recently as February.
Krishnamoorthi, who serves as a ranking member of the House Oversight Subcommittee on Health Care and Financial Services, raised the issue sharply during a Wednesday hearing on diversity, equity, and inclusion policy rollbacks. 'In the name of expunging DEI, the Trump administration has lurched from the farcical to the cruel,' he said, highlighting the crisis line's termination as an especially harmful example. 'These actions are wrong, but do not compete in cruelty with the ending of a suicide hotline for LGBTQ youth.'
The LGBTQ+ subnetwork of 988 was developed under a bipartisan mandate to offer tailored support to high-risk groups, much like the veteran-specific track within the program. In addition to young people, it has provided critical services to adults experiencing distress related to anti-LGBTQ+ violence, legislation, and rejection.
Related: Trump administration finalizes plan to eliminate LGBTQ+ 988 crisis services during WorldPride
At the hearing, Krishnamoorthi pressed conservative legal activist Daniel Lennington on whether he disputed Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data from the Trump administration showing LGBTQ+ youth face significantly higher suicide risk. Lennington replied he was 'not aware of anything to do with the suicide hotline,' prompting Krishnamoorthi to respond, 'That's the problem—a lack of awareness.'
Krishnamoorthi told The Advocate that the decision to eliminate the program was driven by the Trump administration's broader campaign against diversity and inclusion initiatives. 'Eliminating this lifeline is cruelty because you are essentially discontinuing a service that saves lives,' he said. 'In the name of fighting DEI, they're going to cause a lot of young people to DIE.'
Krishnamoorthi warned that 'especially now, during a time when the LGBTQ+ community at large feels tremendous pressure,' the need for the hotline may be 'much higher than it was before.'
Krishnamoorthi emphasized the rare bipartisan nature of the letter to Kennedy. 'It's hard to get bipartisan letters, let alone legislation, on topics involving the LGBTQ+ community,' he said. 'But this one touches a nerve. I think that young people, whoever they are, still occupy a soft corner in people's hearts regardless of ideology.'
The Trump administration's move, first reported in The Advocate in April, was confirmed in the FY2026 budget released during WorldPride in Washington, D.C. Mental health advocates and LGBTQ+ organizations have condemned the proposal as reckless and dangerous.
Mark Henson of The Trevor Project previously told The Advocate the 988 LGBTQ+ subnetwork is 'a vital tool' that serves more than 60,000 young people each month. Without it, advocates warn, those calls may go unanswered—or be routed to general crisis lines lacking LGBTQ+ expertise.
In response to a question about his message to young LGBTQ+ people, Krishnamoorthi said he's met with young people and their parents and understands their pain. 'We've got to band together at the state level, at the local level to protect whatever rights we can. We must continue to fight for change in the future,' he said.
Krishmamoorthi added, 'If we can rally around a group of people, it would be our young people.'
If you or someone you know needs mental health resources and support, please call, text, or chat with the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline or visit 988lifeline.org for 24/7 access to free and confidential services. Trans Lifeline, designed for transgender or gender-nonconforming people, can be reached at (877) 565-8860. The lifeline also provides resources to help with other crises, such as domestic violence situations. The Trevor Project Lifeline, for LGBTQ+ youth (ages 24 and younger), can be reached at (866) 488-7386. Users can also access chat services at TheTrevorProject.org/Help or text START to 678678.
This article originally appeared on Advocate: Bipartisan House coalition demands RFK Jr. reverse Trump's plan to end LGBTQ+ suicide prevention hotline
Advocates and health experts worry Trump's suicide prevention hotline cuts will increase LGBTQ+ youth deaths
The Trevor Project Extends 988 Crisis Line Partnership to Support Vulnerable LGBTQ+ Youth
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CBS News
7 minutes ago
- CBS News
Dozens protest Children's Hospital LA decision to end gender-affirming care
Dozens of people protested outside Children's Hospital LA and demanded that the medical center reverse its decision to shut down its gender-affirming programs. "I have so many people who are being affected by this," said teen Sage Pitchnik, who is transgender. "This place saved my life so many times. I wouldn't be here without it." In an internal email shared with CBS News Los Angeles, the CHLA administration stated that it had to close its Center for Transyouth Health and Development and terminate its gender-affirming surgical program in July due to the "increasingly severe impacts of federal administrative actions and proposed policies." In January, President Trump signed an executive order aimed at cutting federal support for certain types of gender-affirming care for people under 19 years old. "We had to sit down with my daughter today and it was hard," parent Jessie Thorn said. "It's hard to explain that there are people in the world who don't want her to see the doctor." CHLA provided care to more than 3,000 transgender youth and people up to 25 years old through its Center for Transyouth Health and Development. "In the end, this painful and difficult decision was driven by the need to safeguard CHLA's ability to operate amid significant external pressures beyond our control," the internal email from earlier this month stated. The Los Angeles LGBT Center organized rallies every Thursday leading up to the closure. Each rally will feature speakers from the community and families who have been affected by the closure. "LA County does not have enough gender care providers to address every patient and their individual case," community organizer Maria Do said. "This is going to put a big stress on our system." CHLA staff said it will help patients find new providers.
CBS News
7 minutes ago
- CBS News
Cal Poly Pomona graduate released after immigration arrest in downtown L.A.
Federal authorities on Thursday released the Cal Poly Pomona graduate who was arrested during an immigration enforcement operation downtown Los Angeles earlier this week. Andrea Guadalupe Velez, who is a U.S. citizen, expressed her relief after spending the past two days in a federal detention facility. "It's been hard," Velez said. "I didn't know all this media coverage was happening and I'm just relieved that I'm outside." Velez's mother and sister recorded federal agents carrying Velez away during an immigration enforcement operation. Her family had just dropped her off at the shoe store and had barely even driven a block before the arrest began. Velez said she remembered masked men suddenly surrounding her. "It was just a day of work and everything happened so fast," Velez said. "They didn't identify themselves, so I was kind of scared. I was like 'what's going on?' ... I wasn't doing anything crazy. I was just going to follow orders, and they decided to pick me up, and that was kind of shocking." On Wednesday, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said Velez "was arrested for assaulting an ICE enforcement officer." In the criminal complaint against Velez, a federal agent said, "he saw a woman (later identified as Velez) step into his path and extend one of her arms in an apparent effort to prevent him from apprehending the male subject he was chasing." Velez denied the claim. She added that she did not know the man and believes she was profiled. "When I was already in the car, arrested, they asked for my ID, and they were kind of questioning whether I was a U.S. citizen or not," she said. "I'm Latina, so I'm pretty sure I was probably racially profiled." CBS News Los Angeles contacted DHS for a comment on Velez's claims. They did not respond as of Thursday night.
Yahoo
7 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump administration sues all 15 Maryland federal judges over order blocking removal of immigrants
The Trump administration on Tuesday filed a lawsuit against all 15 federal judges in Maryland over an order blocking the immediate deportation of migrants challenging their removals, ratcheting up a fight with the federal judiciary over President Donald Trump's executive powers. The remarkable action lays bare the administration's determination to exert its will over immigration enforcement as well as a growing exasperation with federal judges who have time and again turned aside executive branch actions they see as lawless and without legal merit. 'It's extraordinary," Laurie Levenson, a professor at Loyola Law School, said of the Justice Department's lawsuit. 'And it's escalating DOJ's effort to challenge federal judges.' At issue is an order signed by Chief Judge George L. Russell III and filed in May blocking the administration from immediately removing from the U.S. any immigrants who file paperwork with the Maryland district court seeking a review of their detention. The order blocks the removal until 4 p.m. on the second business day after the habeas corpus petition is filed. The administration says the automatic pause on removals violates a Supreme Court ruling and impedes the president's authority to enforce immigration laws. The Republican administration has been locked for weeks in a growing showdown with the federal judiciary amid a barrage of legal challenges to the president's efforts to carry out key priorities around immigration and other matters. The Justice Department has grown increasingly frustrated by rulings blocking the president's agenda, accusing judges of improperly impeding the president's powers. "President Trump's executive authority has been undermined since the first hours of his presidency by an endless barrage of injunctions designed to halt his agenda,' Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement Wednesday. 'The American people elected President Trump to carry out his policy agenda: this pattern of judicial overreach undermines the democratic process and cannot be allowed to stand.' A spokesman for the Maryland district court declined to comment. Trump has railed against unfavorable judicial rulings, and in one case called for the impeachment of a federal judge in Washington who ordered planeloads of deported immigrants to be turned around. That led to an extraordinary statement from Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, who said 'impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision.' Among the judges named in the lawsuit is Paula Xinis, who has called the administration's deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia to El Salvador illegal. Attorneys for Abrego Garcia have asked Xinis to impose fines against the administration for contempt, arguing that it ignored court orders for weeks to return him to the U.S. The order signed by Russell says it aims to maintain existing conditions and the potential jurisdiction of the court, ensure immigrant petitioners are able to participate in court proceedings and access attorneys and give the government 'fulsome opportunity to brief and present arguments in its defense.' In an amended order, Russell said the court had received an influx of habeas petitions after hours that "resulted in hurried and frustrating hearings in that obtaining clear and concrete information about the location and status of the petitioners is elusive.' The Trump administration has asked the Maryland judges to recuse themselves from the case. It wants a clerk to have a federal judge from another state hear it. James Sample, a constitutional law professor at Hofstra University, described the lawsuit as further part of the erosion of legal norms by the administration. Normally when parties are on the losing side of an injunction, they appeal the order — not sue the court or judges, he said. On one hand, he said, the Justice Department has a point that injunctions should be considered extraordinary relief; it's unusual for them to be granted automatically in an entire class of cases. But, he added, it's the administration's own actions in repeatedly moving detainees to prevent them from obtaining writs of habeas corpus that prompted the court to issue the order. 'The judges here didn't ask to be put in this unenviable position,' Sample said. 'Faced with imperfect options, they have made an entirely reasonable, cautious choice to modestly check an executive branch that is determined to circumvent any semblance of impartial process.' ___ Associated Press reporters Gene Johnson in Seattle and Eric Tucker and Alanna Durkin Richer in Washington contributed to this report.
