Text of US SB 2826 (2026)

II 119TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 2826 To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to dedicate sufficient resources for the support of LGBTQ+ youth seeking help from the 9–8–8 suicide prevention hotline, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES SEPTEMBER 17 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 16), 2025 Ms. BALDWIN (for herself and Ms. MURKOWSKI) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Edu- cation, Labor, and Pensions A BILL To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to dedicate sufficient resources for the support of LGBTQ+ youth seeking help from the 9–8–8 suicide prevention hotline, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘988 LGBTQ+ Youth 4 Access Act of 2025’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds that— 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:25 Sep 26, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2826.IS S2826 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 2 •S 2826 IS (1) according to the Centers for Disease Con- 1 trol and Prevention, 45 percent of high school stu- 2 dents who seriously considered attempting suicide in 3 2021 identified as LGBTQ+; 4 (2) since its launch, the Specialized Services for 5 LGBTQ+ youth within the 988 Suicide Prevention 6 and Crisis Lifeline have received nearly 1,500,000 7 calls, texts, and chats, with an average of 2,200 con- 8 tacts per day as of May 2025; and 9 (3) given that LGBTQ+ youth are four times 10 more likely to attempt suicide as compared to their 11 peers, the Specialized Services for LGBTQ+ youth 12 are equipped with crucial training addressing 13 LGBTQ+ specific challenges and needs. 14 SEC. 3. SUICIDE PREVENTION HOTLINE SERVICES FOR 15 LGBTQ+ YOUTH. 16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 520E–3(b) of the Public 17 Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 290bb–36c(b)) is amend- 18 ed— 19 (1) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 20 end; 21 (2) in paragraph (5), by striking the period at 22 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 23 (3) by adding at the end the following: 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:25 Sep 26, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2826.IS S2826 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 3 •S 2826 IS ‘‘(6) dedicating sufficient resources, including 1 establishing, re-establishing, operating, and main- 2 taining specialized services (known as the Press 3 3 option or Integrated Voice Response (IVR)), for the 4 support of youth who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, 5 transgender, queer, or questioning (LGBTQ+) seek- 6 ing help from the suicide prevention hotline.’’. 7 (b) FUNDING.—Section 520E–3(f) of the Public 8 Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 290bb–36c(f)) is amended 9 by adding at the end the following: ‘‘Of the amounts ap- 10 propriated under this subsection for a fiscal year, the Sec- 11 retary shall reserve not less than 9 percent for carrying 12 out subsection (b)(6).’’. 13 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:25 Sep 26, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S2826.IS S2826 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS