Suicide-Prevention Merger

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and The Jed Foundation said on April 21 they plan to merge as equals into one nonprofit focused on suicide prevention across the lifespan. (afsp.org) The groups said the combined organization would be called AFSP/JED and would become the nation’s largest suicide-prevention nonprofit, pending approval from the New York State Attorney General. They said they expect the deal to close this fall. (jedfoundation.org) AFSP and JED said the merged group would start with an annual operating budget of about $75 million and net assets of roughly $140 million. Fierce Healthcare reported those figures would put the new organization at a larger scale than either group now operates alone. (fiercehealthcare.com) The merger joins two nonprofits that work in different parts of the same problem. AFSP funds research, runs public-policy campaigns, and has chapters in all 50 states and Puerto Rico, while JED works with high schools, colleges, and youth-serving groups on mental-health and suicide-prevention systems. (theovernight.org) (jedfoundation.org) School prevention is a central part of the pitch. JED already runs JED Campus, a multiyear program that helps colleges assess policies, train staff, and build support systems, and it has also been developing a districtwide approach for kindergarten-through-12th-grade schools with AASA, the School Superintendents Association. (jedcampus.org) (aasa.org) JED has argued that those school-based systems can change student outcomes, not just awareness. In a 2024 report on a decade of JED Campus data, the organization said participating colleges showed lower rates of suicidal ideation, suicide planning, and suicide attempts. (jedfoundation.org) (businesswire.com) The announcement lands as suicide remains a major U.S. public-health problem. CDC says provisional death-certificate data are early estimates, and the American Association of Suicidology said final 2024 data showed 48,824 suicide deaths nationwide. (cdc.gov) (suicidology.org) AFSP has spent recent years pushing national and state policy as well as public education. Its 2024 annual report said its chapter network advocated on 29 firearm-related bills in 15 states and drew nearly a quarter-million people to Out of the Darkness walks. (annual2024.afsp.org) The groups framed the merger as a way to combine AFSP’s national chapter and policy reach with JED’s school and youth-prevention playbook. If regulators approve it on the timeline they gave Tuesday, AFSP/JED would begin operating this fall. (afsp.org)