1. United States
2. Pa.
3. Letter

I am writing to demand immediate action regarding the Social Security Administration's dangerous and unacceptable training that instructs employees to tell suicidal callers that "suicide is only one option." This guidance was provided during a January 26, 2025 training session for benefits authorizers and technical experts being reassigned to phone duties. This approach directly contradicts established suicide prevention protocols and puts vulnerable Americans at risk. Caitlin Thompson, a clinical psychologist who spent eight years at the Veterans Affairs Department working on the Veterans Crisis Line and as national director of suicide prevention, stated this is "not a normal thing to say" and "not the thing you say to somebody who might be suicidal." The National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention explicitly warns that messages presenting suicide as acceptable "may spur imitation of suicidal behavior among marginalized individuals." The people calling SSA are often disabled Americans navigating retirement and disability claims during the most challenging moments of their lives. They deserve evidence-based crisis intervention, not guidance that normalizes suicide as a choice. Best practices require employees to ask if callers feel safe and arrange warm handoffs to crisis lines, not present suicide as one option among many. SSA employees at the training expressed disbelief at this guidance. Those now handling calls report facing complex situations involving incarceration and immigration status that their inadequate training did not cover. These workers were pulled from processing claims and managing technology to answer phones, yet they are being set up to fail people in crisis. I urge you to immediately investigate this training program, demand SSA adopt evidence-based suicide prevention protocols, and ensure adequate staffing so that trained crisis specialists handle these calls. Disabled Americans contacting SSA should receive competent, compassionate support that protects their lives, not dangerous advice that could contribute to their deaths.