Illinois officials said it’s time to put pressure on the Trump administration to restore a lifeline they say can save the lives of LGBTQ+ youth experiencing mental health crises.
Officials, including U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, are pushing the administration to restore the “Press 3” option on the nation’s 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, which previously provided specialized crisis services for LGBTQ+ youth.
“These were people, perhaps on the worst days of their life, at the worst hour of their day, reaching out for someone in the darkness to help save their life,” Krishnamoorthi said at a news conference Thursday.
The 988 Lifeline, including services for veterans and LGBTQ+ youth, was signed into law by President Trump during his first term. But in July 2025, the administration ended the specialized services for LGBTQ+ youth, saying the Lifeline would no longer “silo” those services and would instead focus on “serving all help seekers.”
Krishnamoorthi said the service was canceled as part of the administration’s “anti-DEI efforts.” The administration, however, said the “Press 3” option had exhausted the funds allocated for 988 Lifeline LGBTQ+ subnetwork services.
The administration said Congress had allocated more than $33 million for the LGBTQ+ services in 2025, but the funding was fully spent by June.
But Illinois officials said LGBTQ+ youth face a higher risk of mental health crises and should have access to specialized crisis services that provide “affirming support.”
Because of this, Krishnamoorthi and other officials introduced the “988 LGBTQ+ Youth Access Act of 2025” in September 2025, seeking to pressure the federal government to restore the specialized services.
Krishnamoorthi said that despite bipartisan support and $33.1 million in available funding, the administration has refused to restore the services.
Dulce Quintero, secretary of the Illinois Department of Human Services, said the state had to “fill the gap” in services left by the federal government.
Quintero said the state began training all 988 Lifeline counselors in Illinois on LGBTQIA+ cultural competency. In the past year, Illinois received nearly 173,000 calls and was able to resolve 98% of them without further intervention, according to Quintero.
But while Illinois has been able to continue offering specialized services, she said that isn’t the case in other states.
“In Illinois we have an administration that supports this,” said Quintero. “That is not the reality in other states. We have been able to do this here in Illinois, but we need to make sure that it’s available across and throughout the country. “
LGBTQ+ youth are three times more likely than their peers to attempt suicide, and about 40% of youth who attempt suicide identify as LGBTQ+, according to The Trevor Project, a suicide prevention nonprofit.
“It’s important when we’re framing this, that we don’t talk about LGBTQ youth as having increased mental health or suicidality just for being who they are, but rather they’re placed at higher risk, because of the mistreatment and stigmatization that they face in society,” said Keygan Miller, director of public training at The Trevor Project.
Miller said The Trevor Project has fielded more than half of the calls made to the 988 Lifeline since the “Press 3” option was eliminated.
Before the service was canceled, The Trevor Project and six other crisis centers answered those calls. Miller said the organization is prepared to once again provide support if the service is restored.