Administration 47 Takes Aim at LGBTQ+ Americans (Again)

And you know it was intentionally done during Pride Month

Yesterday was a sad day for LGBTQ+ individuals and allies. First there was the Supreme Court’s decision upholding the ban on gender-affirming care for youth in Tennessee, then the news that the 988 suicide hotline would no longer offer specialized services and referrals for LGBTQ+ callers.

Other than to say I disagree with the decision, I’ll leave the commentary on gender-affirming care to other passionate advocates who are more versed on the intricacies of the topic. I’d like to address the cessation of specialized suicide prevention services for LGBTQ+ individuals who seek aid through the 988 suicide hotline.

Image source: https://naminj.org/988-reimagining-crisis-response/

As a licensed social worker and trained mental health professional, the flaws in this purely political decision to limit access to targeted care for LGBTQ+ individuals are readily apparent.

The CDC (2025) specifically notes:

• Suicide and suicidal behavior are influenced by negative conditions in which people live, play, work, and learn.

• Some groups experience more negative conditions or factors related to suicide.

• Addressing these negative conditions and factors can help prevent suicide and suicide attempts.

The 988 hotline, an alternative to basic 911 emergency services, was created to be a first line response dedicated to addressing our nation’s growing crisis of suicidality. According to SAMSHA’s 988 Fact Sheet (n.d.), “The 988 Lifeline was established to improve access to immediate support to meet the nation’s growing mental health, suicide, and substance use distress needs.”

Simply put, 988’s purpose is to save lives when people are experiencing suicidality.

When addressing the needs of individuals experiencing suicidality, it makes sense to create services targeted at populations who are most at-risk for suicide, particularly when unique contributing risk factors have previously been identified.

There are dozens, more likely hundreds, of research papers and studies demonstrating that certain individuals are at greater risk of suicide due to unique and inherent factors. Included in these special populations are military veterans and the LGBTQ+ population.

Our federal government, through the CDC, acknowledges that suicide rates are higher among veterans and among youth and adolescents who identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual (CDC, January 30, 2025). Note the date of this CDC update, which is post-inauguration day and aligned with the plethora of Executive Orders issued by this president. This means the information on the CDC website had already been updated to reflect the… um, let’s generously call them “scientific priorities” of this administration. That means they know and tacitly agree this heightened risk of suicide exists in some populations, including LGB populations (Where did the “T+” go? I’ll get to that shortly).

Specifically:

In 2020, 6,146 veterans died by suicide. Suicide was the 13^th leading cause of death among veterans overall, and the second leading cause of death among veterans under age 45 [emphasis added]. Veterans have an age-adjusted suicide rate that is 57.3% greater than the non-veteran U.S. adult population. Veterans account for about 13.9% of suicides among adults in the United States.

and

In 2021, more than a quarter (26.3%) of high school students identifying as lesbian, gay, or bisexual reported attempting suicide in the prior 12 months. This was five times higher [emphasis added] than the prevalence among heterosexual students (5.2%).

Left unstated in the above paragraph are the rates of suicidality among transgender, non-binary, or otherwise gender non-conforming youth. This is not due to lack of information on those rates, as multiple studies have cited enhanced risk of suicidality in this population.

Rather, I attribute this intentional omission to the federal government’s efforts to erase any reference to trans people and transgenderism from federal websites and documents (again, this page was updated on January 30, 2025, post trans-targeted EOs).

This does not erase the problem of suicide among transgender youth or make it non-existent. It just buries it beneath obstinance, lack of respect, and an inability to recognize the very real lived experiences of certain human beings. (Also, the intentional omission of trans people from government documents and websites does not erase trans people, despite the malicious desires of this administration. They’re here. They’re queer. Get used to them.)

In order to address the specific needs of these two vulnerable populations, 988 established linkages to specialized services for veterans and LGBTQ+ individuals. While specialized services for veterans will continue to remain available, specialized services for LGBTQ+ persons will now be eliminated beginning in mid-July (Howard, 2025).

Compare this type of exclusion and restriction of services for mental health needs to any other life-threatening medical condition. When a person is experiencing acute chest pain, they often require the services of a cardiac specialist. They may initially be treated by a generalist or emergency care specialist; however, as the nature of the cardiac issues become more apparent, cardiac specialists necessarily become involved in the process.

Generalists may be able to provide triage services and basic cardiac care to patients, but specialists are required to provide the best and most informed treatment possible.

Eliminating access to specialized care for LGBTQ+ persons through the 988 hotline is like eliminating access to cardiac care services (or other medical specialist services) from emergency room care, despite knowing those services could be beneficial in keeping the patient alive. It’s a dereliction of duty.¹

Medical and mental health practices include specialization areas because they are needed to provide complete and effective care for those in need. In the case of LGBTQ+ individuals, specialized mental health services ensure that individuals receive tailored support from counselors who understand their unique needs and experiences.

Veterans and LGBTQ+ individuals have been identified as persons at heightened risk for suicidality. As such, both deserve access to the specialized care they need to address the unique and compounding mental health issues they face that may contribute to episodes of acute suicidality. If 988 can offer access to specialized support for veterans, it can offer access to specialized support for the LGBTQ+ population. One is not more deserving than the other.

When evidence demonstrates that certain populations benefit from specialized services, to withhold those services for political reasons is unethical, amoral, and quite simply cruel. Then again, we’ve learned to expect nothing less from this Administration.

Don't let these harms go unnoticed, even if you don't identify as LGBTQ+ yourself. Allyship is important. Raise your voice against these unjust actions intended to cause harm to those targeted by this administration. Otherwise, you and your loved ones may become the next group targeted.

Image source: https://my.lwv.org/wisconsin/article/lgbtq-rights-they%E2%80%99re-not-privilege

References

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (January 30, 2025). Health Disparities in Suicide. Retrieved from: https://www.cdc.gov/suicide/disparities/index.html

Howard, J. (June 18, 2025). Trump administration to end 988 suicide prevention specialized service for LGBTQ+ youth in July. Retrieved from: https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/18/health/trump-ends-988-lgbtq-suicide-prevention-service-wellness

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). (n.d.). 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline Fact Sheet. Retrieved from: https://www.samhsa.gov/sites/default/files/988-factsheet.pdf

Tuskegee University. (2025). About the USPHS Syphilis Study. Retrieved from: https://www.tuskegee.edu/about-us/centers-of-excellence/bioethics-center/about-the-usphs-syphilis-study

1. We saw similar methods employed during the infamous Tuskegee Experiments conducted by the U.S. government between 1932 and 1972, when life-saving treatment for syphilis was withheld from Black men in the name of scientific discovery, despite the treatment and its success rates being available to those doctors and scientists conducting the experiments (Tuskegee University, 2025).