# National Agricultural Crisis Hotline Act of 2023

Farmers and ranchers face a mental health crisis that's often invisible but devastating. This bill creates a dedicated 24/7 hotline specifically designed to help farmers, ranchers, and their families who are struggling with stress, depression, substance abuse, or suicidal thoughts. The statistics behind this are sobering: farmers have a suicide rate 3.5 times higher than the general population, and male farmers specifically have suicide rates significantly higher than other professions. The bill recognizes that farming communities often carry stigma around mental health issues and need specialized support that understands their unique pressures and lifestyle.

The hotline will operate around the clock through phone calls and text messaging, staffed by trained crisis counselors, licensed mental health professionals, or licensed healthcare workers who have specific training in farm stress and agricultural issues. These staff members will receive at least 80 hours of specialized training in suicide intervention, trauma-informed care, and agricultural mental health before they start taking calls independently. The hotline will also make follow-up calls to check on people after their initial contact and provide referrals to other mental health services and agricultural resources. Everything will be kept confidential under federal privacy laws, and the service will offer translation services for non-English speakers.

Beyond just answering calls, the bill requires the hotline to partner with existing farm helplines, coordinate with the USDA's loan programs to spread awareness, and work with the national 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline to redirect agriculture-related calls to this specialized service. The government will also run public awareness campaigns to make sure farmers and ranchers actually know the hotline exists. To fund all of this, the bill increases annual funding from $10 million to $19 million per year through 2028, with $4 million each year specifically dedicated to running the hotline. The USDA will also have to report annually to Congress on how well the hotline is working and what impact it's having on the agricultural community.

National Agricultural Crisis Hotline Act of 2023

Caraveo, Yadira

National Agricultural Crisis Hotline Act of 2023This bill establishes a national agricultural crisis hotline. The bill also reauthorizes the Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network (FRSAN) Program through FY2028. (The FRSAN Program funds projects that aim to maintain a network connecting individuals engaged in farming, ranching, and other agriculture-related occupations to stress assistance programs.)Specifically, the Department of Agriculture&nbsp;(USDA) must establish, and maintain directly or by grant or contract, a national agricultural crisis hotline as part of the FRSAN. The crisis hotline must provide emotional support, information, suicide crisis intervention, mental health and substance use disorder, and agricultural support resources to farmers, farm managers, farm workers, and ranchers affected by mental health and substance use disorders and their families or household members.Under the program, USDA or an entity receiving a grant or contract must (1) form partnerships between the crisis hotline and existing farm telephone helplines and websites; and (2) develop, and periodically update, a directory of organizations to which hotline staff can make referrals.The bill also includes requirements for<ul><li>the qualifications and training for the call responders and supervisors operating the hotline,</li><li>data collection by the hotline, and</li><li>conducting a public awareness campaign for the hotline.&nbsp;</li></ul>In addition, the bill expands the types of programs eligible for FRSAN grants to include mental health training for agriculture professionals (e.g., farm loan officers, extension agents, and state department of agriculture staff).&nbsp;