Summary
The Trump administration has laid off over 100 employees at SAMHSA, the U.S. mental health agency, during a government shutdown. SAMHSA manages the 988 suicide prevention hotline and provides grants for mental health and addiction services. The layoffs are part of wider reductions affecting several government agencies.
Key Facts
- Over 100 employees were laid off at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Agency (SAMHSA).
- The layoffs occurred amid an ongoing government shutdown.
- SAMHSA oversees the 988 suicide prevention hotline and distributes billions in mental health and addiction service grants.
- The agency had approximately 900 employees before the layoffs.
- President Trump's administration previously proposed cutting SAMHSA's budget.
- The Department of Health and Human Services did not comment on the layoffs.
- Similar staff cuts occurred at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) but some were reversed.
- SAMHSA was created in 1992 and played a key role in the U.S. mental health system.
