New 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline marks first week since launch

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline has a new, easy-to-remember number for 24/7 crisis care.

The transition to 988 — a three-year joint effort by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to put crisis care more in reach for people in need — officially ended with the launch of 9-8-8 last Saturday, July 16.

The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is a network of more than 200 state and local call centers supported by HHS through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

The initiative is part of the Biden administration’s effort to address the nation’s ongoing mental health crisis and was identified by U.S. Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra as a top priority at HHS.

Since January 2021, federal investments to support the 988 transition have increased 8-fold (from $24M to $432M).

The 10-digit Lifeline number 1-800-273-TALK (8255) will continue to be operational after July 16 and will route calls to 988 indefinitely. Veterans, service members, and their families can also still reach the Veterans Crisis Line with the current phone number 1-800-273-8255 and Press 1, or by chat

 

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Supreme Court hands down flurry of major decisions

By:  Lisa Soronen, State and Local Legal Center, Washington, D.C.

The State and Local Legal Center (SLLC) files Supreme Court amicus curiae briefs on behalf of the Big Seven national organizations representing state and local governments. CSG East occasionally republishes briefs, like the one below, on cases and decisions that affect the Eastern Region.

Recent decisions handed down by the Supreme Court will have major implications for states, including a school funding case originating in Maine and a gun licensing case originating in New York. Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, overturning Roe v. Wade, is covered below as well.

 

 

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SCOTUS Brief: United States v. Vaello Madero

By:  Lisa Soronen, State and Local Legal Center, Washington, D.C.

The State and Local Legal Center (SLLC) files Supreme Court amicus curiae briefs on behalf of the Big Seven national organizations representing state and local governments. CSG East occasionally republished briefs, like the one below, on cases and decisions that affect the Eastern Region.

 

In United States v. Vaello Madero the U.S. Supreme Court held 8-1 that Congress hasn’t violated the equal-protection component of the Fifth Amendment’s Due Process Clause by failing to make Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits available to Puerto Rico residents.

Through SSI, the federal government makes monthly cash payments to qualifying low-income individuals who are over 65 years old, blind, or disabled. To receive SSI, an individual must be a “resident of the United States,” which the statute defines as the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

According to the Court, “the Federal Government provides supplemental income assistance to covered residents of Puerto Rico through a different benefits program — one that is funded in part by the Federal Government and in part by Puerto Rico.” Residents of Puerto Rico don’t pay most federal income, gift, estate, and excise taxes.

When Jose Luis Vaello Madero moved from New York to Puerto Rico he was no longer eligible to receive SSI. He claimed excluding Puerto Rican residents from SSI is unconstitutional.

In a very brief opinion written by Justice Kavanaugh, the Court disagreed, citing the “text of the Constitution, longstanding historical practice, and this Court’s precedents.”

Regarding the constitution’s text, the Territory Clause states that Congress may “make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory . . . belonging to the United States.” According to Justice Kavanaugh, “[t]he text of the Clause affords Congress broad authority to legislate with respect to the U.S. Territories.”

Regarding precedent, in Califano v. Torres (1978) the Court held that Congress’s refusal to extend SSI to Puerto Rico didn’t violate the constitutional right to interstate travel. In that case, the Court applied the “deferential” rational-basis test and explained that Congress had exempted Puerto Rician residents from federal taxes. Likewise, in Harris v. Rosario (1980) “the Court again ruled that Congress’s differential treatment of Puerto Rico in a federal benefits program did not violate the Constitution — this time, the equal-protection component of the Fifth Amendment’s Due Process Clause.”

According to the Court, the above two cases determine the result in this case and that the rational-basis test applies. “Puerto Rico’s tax status — in particular, the fact that residents of Puerto Rico are typically exempt from most federal income, gift, estate, and excise taxes — supplies a rational basis for likewise distinguishing residents of Puerto Rico from residents of the States for purposes of the Supplemental Security Income benefits program.”

Justice Sotomayor dissented alone, opining “there is no rational basis for Congress to treat needy citizens living anywhere in the United States so differently from others. To hold otherwise, as the Court does, is irrational and antithetical to the very nature of the SSI program and the equal protection of citizens guaranteed by the Constitution.”

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