MedPage Today (4/24, Firth) reported that during a Senate hearing last week, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “was asked whether he would commit to restoring the tailored line for LGBTQ+ callers to 988, as required by law, after the Trump administration removed it last summer.” Kennedy responded, “We are working on getting it up now.” Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), the author of “legislation responsible for creating the three-digit lifeline, replacing the prior 10-digit number, also introduced a bill last September, requiring the HHS Secretary to codify the 988 lifeline’s specialized LGBTQ+ program into law. That bill is still pending; however, provisions aimed at restoring the specialized program were tucked into the fiscal year 2026 funding legislation, which has been made law.” The fiscal year 2026 funding bill “included $535 million for the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, including $33.1 million for the LGBTQ+ line.” However, the legislation “does not include a timeline for reinstating the program.”
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