988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline Crisis Center Follow-Up Programs | FG 26 004

Opportunity Information: Apply for FG 26 004

The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline Crisis Center Follow-Up Programs grant (Funding Opportunity Number FG 26 004) is a discretionary federal funding opportunity from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). It is offered as a cooperative agreement, which typically means the funder expects to have an active role in the project through collaboration, reporting, and ongoing coordination rather than simply issuing funds and stepping back. The overall aim is to strengthen what happens after a person contacts the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by helping crisis centers build more consistent, organized follow-up practices and tighter connections to the broader crisis care system.

At its core, the program is focused on reducing repeat crises and preventing loss of life by ensuring that people who reach out to 988, especially those at elevated risk for suicide or overdose, do not fall through the cracks once the immediate contact ends. The grant emphasizes systematic follow-up for suicidal individuals who contact 988, meaning crisis centers are expected to develop dependable processes to re-contact, check in, and support people after an initial call, text, or chat. The intent is to provide continued support and warm linkages to services rather than leaving individuals to navigate next steps alone during a vulnerable period.

The opportunity also targets improved coordination across the crisis continuum of care. This includes strengthening how 988 crisis centers connect with and coordinate services like crisis stabilization programs, crisis respite options, mobile crisis outreach (MCO) response, and other community-based crisis supports. The idea is to make transitions smoother and faster, reduce handoff failures, and ensure that when a person needs more than phone-based support, the pathway to in-person or ongoing help is clear and workable. By building stronger coordination, the program aims to reduce future crisis events and improve continuity of care, particularly for individuals with complex needs or repeated contacts with crisis systems.

Another major purpose is to reduce unnecessary involvement of police, fire, and emergency medical services in behavioral health crises when those responses are not needed for safety. The grant frames this as both a public health and a public safety improvement: better follow-up and better coordination should help prevent crises from escalating to the point where 911 dispatch or emergency response becomes the default. By decreasing avoidable first-responder engagement, the program seeks to reserve those resources for situations where there is a true public safety need, while promoting more appropriate behavioral health crisis responses through the 988 and crisis services network.

The program also explicitly prioritizes improving connections to ongoing support and recovery for high-risk populations. While the opportunity description does not list every population category, the framing suggests a focus on people with heightened vulnerability to suicide, overdose, and repeated crisis episodes. In practice, this usually points to efforts that strengthen engagement after the crisis contact, improve follow-through on referrals, and build bridges to longer-term supports such as outpatient treatment, peer support, substance use recovery resources, and other community services that reduce risk over time.

Eligibility is narrow and specific: applicants must be crisis centers that are part of the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline Network and that provide 24/7 services. In other words, this is not broadly open to general nonprofits, hospitals, or local governments unless they operate an eligible Lifeline crisis center meeting those requirements. The listing identifies the eligible applicant type as "Others," which aligns with the expectation that participating crisis centers (often nonprofits, health systems, or governmental entities operating call centers) are the intended recipients as long as they meet the Lifeline network and round-the-clock service criteria.

Funding details include an award ceiling of $250,000 per award and an expectation of about 30 awards. The posted closing date is July 17, 2026, and the opportunity was created on June 17, 2026. The activity category is Health, and the CFDA/Assistance Listing number is shown as 93.00R. Overall, the grant is designed to help eligible 988 crisis centers strengthen follow-up infrastructure, deepen coordination with mobile and facility-based crisis services, lessen unnecessary emergency responder involvement, and improve sustained engagement and recovery connections for people at highest risk after a 988 contact.

• The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Adminis in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline Crisis Center Follow-Up Programs" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.00R.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2026-06-17.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2026-07-17. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $250,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 30 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for FG 26 004

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