Supervisors Push Forward on Effort to Reinstate Specialized LGBTQ+ Support Through 988 Crisis Hotline

LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Dec. 9 approved two motions authored by Supervisor Janice Hahn and co-authored by Supervisor Lindsey P. Horvath that seek to move forward on efforts to reinstate the connection from 988—the national Suicide and Crisis Lifeline—to a specialized LGBTQ+ youth support line (otherwise known as the  “Press 3” option) that was eliminated in July by the Trump Administration. In a press conference before the board meeting, Hahn and Horvath were joined by California State Assemblymember Mark González, who plans to introduce legislation during the upcoming legislative cycle that would fund and reinstate a statewide specialized 988 subnetwork for LGBTQ+ youth across California.

“The Press 3 option was a lifeline, and losing it has been devastating. It wasn’t just a policy change—it was a message to LGBTQ+ young people that their needs didn’t matter,” said Supervisor Janice Hahn. “But LA County will not turn its back on our LGBTQ+ young people.  Not now, not ever. So we are going to work at every level—local, state, and federal—to get this lifeline restored and protected for good.”

In July, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration or SAMHSA ended federal funding for specialized services that allowed 988 callers to be connected to LGBTQ+ youth counseling. Previously, callers could press 3 after dialing 988 to get routed to a subnetwork of specialized call centers that provided over-the-phone counseling specifically for LGBTQ+ youth. In the last year before this service was terminated, over 14% of the 5.1 million 988 callers elected to use this Press 3 option.

The first of Hahn and Horvath’s two motions both directs the county’s Department of Mental Health or DMH to develop a proposal for a local “Press 3” pilot program and expresses the county’s support for the legislation that González plans to introduce to reinstate the service statewide. DMH operates the County’s 24/7 Alternative Crisis Response System, which includes the LA County 988 Call Center. This system seeks to reduce the reliance on law enforcement for individuals experiencing a behavioral health crisis. In July—shortly before the federal cuts to the Press 3 option went into effect—Hahn and Horvath led the effort to evaluate the impact of the cuts and explore possible options for preserving it for Los Angeles County residents.

Hahn and Horvath’s second motion expresses the county’s support for S. 2826,2—introduced by Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Lisa  Murkowski (R-AK)—and H.R. 5434,3—introduced by Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL).These bipartisan bills, known collectively as the 988 LGBTQ+ Youth Access Act of 2025, would protect specialized mental health services for LGBTQ+ youth by codifying the “Press 3” option into law, and establishing dedicated resources to reinstate, operate, and maintain this service.