Trump administration moves to restart LGBTQ+ suicide hotline it initially ended

The Trump administration is moving to restart the specialized LGBTQ+ option for youth who contact the 988 crisis intervention hotline – but the group that helped pioneer the idea is being shut out. The Trevor Project, the New York-based leading non-profit for suicide prevention in LGBTQ+ young people in the US, may not be allowed to offer the service it had helped develop for the 988 Lifeline just a few years ago. The 988 hotline, which has been dubbed the 911 for mental health emergencies, is credited with reducing teen and young adult suicide deaths. It offers specialized options for certain groups within minority communities, such as military veterans and Spanish speakers, but last July the Trump administration stopped offering the “press 3” option for LGBTQ+ youth, with a month’s notice. The administration said it ended the service because the funding ran out. It is now working to bring it back by the end of the year because Congress directed officials to allocate $33m toward LGBTQ+ specific interventions for youth. However, the Trevor Project might not be allowed to offer the services it developed and specializes in. Dr Christine Yu Moutier, chief medical officer for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, said it “would not make sense” to keep the Trevor Project ineligible to help and it is a “longstanding, high-quality and trusted resource” to LGBTQ+ people. …