Bay State Congressman Seth Moulton’s bill to create a three-digit suicide prevention hotline—legislation that specifically reaches out to LGBTQ youth and other high-risk groups—passed into law this weekend. The simple three-digit “988” will replace the harder-to-remember (and to enter) 10-digit number that connects callers with local crisis centers.
The new law also “directs federal agencies to develop a strategy to help National Suicide Prevention Lifeline counselors to provide competent, specialized services for high-risk populations, including LGBTQ youth, minorities and rural individuals,” reports the Boston Globe.
The legislation, co-sponsored with Utah Rep. Chris Stewart, moved through the Senate in May and back to the House in September, where it received an unanimous vote before the President signed it on Saturday.
“This passage is a historic victory, as this is the first explicitly LGBTQ-inclusive bill to pass [the US House] unanimously in history—and 988 will undoubtedly save countless lives,” said Sam Brinton, vice president of advocacy and government affairs for The Trevor Project, the LGBTQ youth suicide prevention and crisis organization
“This vital legislation will require the Lifeline to provide specialized services for LGBTQ youth and other high-risk groups, and make it so much easier for millions of Americans to find support in moments of crisis,” Brinton further stated. “We express our sincere gratitude to Congressmen Moulton and Stewart for their leadership in championing the expansion of suicide prevention resources.”
Reports the Globe (via Boston.com):
The Salem congressman, who disclosed struggling with post-traumatic stress after his combat experience in the Iraq War and made mental health a focus point of his short-lived 2020 presidential campaign, called the new law “a win for every American who has been affected by a mental illness.”
“It is a national step forward out of the shadows of stigma that prevent too many people from getting help and into a new era when mental health care is easy to get and normal to talk about,” he said. “I’m so proud of my team and the partners that got this done. This will save tens of thousands of lives every year.”
Callers will still be able to reach the national suicide prevention line at the existing 10-digit number, (800) 273-8255.
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