A law that requires parental consent for almost all medical treatments provided to minors has been affecting children’s access to care in many ways – including the ability to call the Idaho Crisis & Suicide Hotline.
Senate Bill 1329, passed in 2024, requires medical providers to get consent from parents or legal guardians to perform health care services, which include “the diagnosis, screening, examination, prevention, treatment, cure, care, or relief of any physical or mental health condition, illness, injury, defect, or disease.”
Lee Flinn, the director of the Idaho Crisis and Suicide Hotline, said Idaho consistently has one of the highest suicide rates in the United States and the law has created new challenges in supporting minors in times of mental health crises.
“I want to make it really clear that minors can still call or text 988,” said Flinn. “And we want to encourage everyone of any age to do so anytime they feel they're in crisis.”
Asking for help is already difficult for people of all ages, especially teenagers. Flinn said crisis counselors are worried teenagers believe they can’t call or text due to the law and they have no way of knowing how many kids are struggling but not reaching out.
Flinn said the hotline’s current practice under the law is to, “listen to understand what's going on, we will do the safety assessment so we can figure out does their situation rise to that level of the emergency language in the law. And if it does, we proceed supporting them as we would have done before the law.”
Flinn went on to say that if it does not hit that threshold, they explain the changes and then ask the minor if they are able to get permission and consent from a parent.
“At that point, sometimes, and this is the best case scenario, sometimes the minor will say, 'Yeah, my mom's upstairs. I can get her.' So we have had some conversations with the minor and a parent. However, our concern is that it doesn't always work like that. And sometimes a minor will hang up on us, they'll say, ‘I can't do that.’”
Minors should know the Idaho Crisis and Suicide Hotline is still there for them and they can call or text 988 at any time. Crisis counselors will support them as much as possible, within the scope of the law.
Flinn said parents should talk openly with their children about mental health and suicide. Parents can also call the hotline to give consent in advance, allowing the hotline to have it on file for emergencies.
A bill was introduced late in the 2025 Legislative Session to address the unintended consequences of the current law, but it did not advance in the House. Flinn said she hopes legislators will review and adjust the law to better support minors in the 2026 Legislative Session.
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline can be reached by phone or text at “988” and by chat at 988lifeline.org.
