Presidential Documents

Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 176 / Wednesday, September 13, 2023 / Presidential Documents 62691 

Proclamation 10621 of September 8, 2023 

World Suicide Prevention Day, 2023 

By the President of the United States of America 

A Proclamation 

On World Suicide Prevention Day, we hold all those affected by suicide 

close in our hearts—the Americans we have lost to this public health problem, 

the loved ones who mourn their heart-wrenching losses, and all the families 

and professionals working to support those in crisis. Though we recognize 

there is no single cause or single solution to suicide, we know that access 

to support and treatment can save lives. My Administration remains committed to expanding suicide prevention programs to reach every community 

in our Nation and ensuring all Americans can receive the care and support 

they deserve. 

My Administration is working to tackle the mental health crisis, including 

by addressing the many risk factors associated with suicide—it is a core 

pillar of my Unity Agenda and one of the big challenges we as a society 

can overcome together. We have laid out a strategy to transform how mental 

health is understood, accessed, treated, and integrated in and out of health 

care settings. Our goals are to strengthen the mental health system’s capacity, 

connect more Americans to care, and create healthy environments that 

strengthen mental health. 

In 2021, more than 48,000 Americans were lost to suicide, over 12.3 million 

adults seriously considered suicide, and 1.7 million people attempted suicide. 

Suicide is the second leading cause of death among youth and young adults 

between the ages of 10 and 24 years old. And the suicide rate for veterans 

was more than 50 percent greater than for non-veteran adults. Yet despite 

the fact that so many Americans struggle with their mental health, treatment 

is often too expensive or inaccessible. 

In 2021, less than half of all adults with mental illness received care for 

it. For children, the numbers are even worse. Nearly 70 percent of our 

kids who seek care for mental health or substance use cannot get it. Parents, 

teachers, school nurses, and counselors are telling us there is a serious 

youth mental health crisis happening right now in this country. But insurers 

still make it far too difficult to get mental health care. With too few mental 

health providers in their plan’s network, patients with private insurance 

are often forced to seek out-of-network care at significantly higher costs, 

if they can find it. 

Recently, my Administration proposed new steps to meaningfully expand 

access to mental health care in America, including requiring health insurance 

plans to identify gaps in the mental health care that they provide and 

to fix them. Under this plan, insurers would have to measure how often 

they require prior authorization for mental health care treatment and how 

often they deny those requests. 

I have heard the despair from families everywhere, watching their spouse’s, 

child’s, or loved one’s light dim, knowing they need help but lacking the 

means to get it. This sense of helplessness strips families of their confidence 

and dignity. Health insurers should cover mental health crises the same 

way they would cover treatment for a broken bone or any other physical 

health condition. Since I took office, my Administration has been fighting 

to make that a reality. 


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62692 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 176 / Wednesday, September 13, 2023 / Presidential Documents 

Our American Rescue Plan delivered nearly $5 billion to expand Federal 

and State mental health and substance use services. Last year, when we 

passed the Nation’s first major gun safety law in nearly three decades, 

we added measures to further expand the number of school psychologists 

and counselors available to our kids, make it easier for schools to use 

Medicaid to deliver mental health services, and increase the number of 

Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics that deliver 24/7 care. 

We have also launched 988, the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, which 

connects those experiencing a mental health crisis to a trained crisis counselor right away. And we established the National Maternal Mental Health 

Hotline to help mothers navigate mental health issues that can be reached 

by dialing 1–833–TLC–MAMA (1–833–852–6262). And to those experiencing 

emotional distress or thoughts of suicide: Please know that you are loved 

and that there is hope. I encourage you to call or text 988 for free, confidential 

support. 

We are also investing in mental health care and suicide prevention efforts 

for service members and veterans to better honor our sacred obligation 

to the troops we send into harm’s way by caring for them and their families 

when they return. We are hiring more mental health professionals and 

investing in programs that recruit veterans to help others get the support 

they need. We are working to expand rental assistance and job placement 

programs for our veterans to help reduce financial strain. And to help 

our first responders heal from any trauma they faced on the job, I have 

also signed laws that extend counseling, benefits, and other mental health 

resources. 

As the world joins together to honor the memories of those we lost to 

suicide and their loved ones, may we recommit to ensuring that help and 

support are accessible and affordable to every American. 

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States 

of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution 

and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 10, 2023, 

as World Suicide Prevention Day. I call upon all Americans, communities, 

organizations, and levels of government to join me in creating hope through 

action and committing to preventing suicide across America. 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eighth day 

of September, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-three, and 

of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred 

and forty-eighth. 

[FR Doc. 2023–19923 

Filed 9–12–23; 8:45 am] 

Billing code 3395–F3–P 


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