National crisis and support hotline operations remained consistent despite staffing cuts, watchdog found
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ByChristian Robles,
Technology Reporter, Nextgov/FCW
August 17, 2026 03:55 PM ET
Some staff operating mental health support hotlines at the departments of Health and Human Services and Veterans Affairs were subject to reductions in force last year and have not yet been replaced.
Three hotlines offering Americans mental health crisis support saw the quality of their services remain consistent and their communications increase, even as the federal agencies managing them saw a slight decline in staff, according to a Government Accountability Office report published on Aug. 6.
The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, Veterans Crisis Line and National Maternal Mental Health Hotline generally saw calls, texts and chats increase in fiscal 2025 compared to fiscal 2024, the watchdog found.
Performance metrics remained largely consistent across the three hotlines amid the spike in communications, according to the report.
The 988 Lifeline...
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