‘Every Heartbeat Hurts’: Inspector General Report Details Amplified Trauma For Immigrant Kids Separated From Families
The report from HHS' internal watchdog found that children separated from their families under the Trump administration's "zero tolerance" policy did not receive adequate mental health care while in U.S. custody. Some children refused to eat or participate in shelter activities. Some cried inconsolably. Many believed their parents abandoned them or were killed, the report states. The report made six recommendations to improve conditions, including limiting the amount of time children are held.
The Associated Press:
'Can't Feel My Heart:' IG Says Separated Kids Traumatized
Separated from his father at the U.S.-Mexico border last year, the little boy, about 7 or 8, was under the delusion that his dad had been killed. And he thought he was next. Other children believed their parents had abandoned them. And some suffered physical symptoms because of their mental trauma, clinicians reported to investigators with a government watchdog. (Long, Mendoza and Burke, 9/4)
The Wall Street Journal:
Migrant Children Exhibited Post-Traumatic Stress, Government Watchdog Finds
Migrant children separated from their parents last year under the Trump administration’s “zero tolerance” immigration-enforcement policy didn’t receive adequate mental-health care in the government’s custody, according to a new report from the Department of Health and Human Services’ internal watchdog. The report offers a first glimpse at how shelter staff perceived conditions inside the facilities where thousands of children were detained. The Office of Refugee Resettlement, the federal agency charged with caring for unaccompanied migrant children, told investigators for HHS’s inspector general that it struggled to recruit enough mental-health counselors to meet the needs of the children in their care. (Hackman, 9/4)
CQ:
Trump's Family Separation Policy Amplified Children's Trauma
The Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Inspector General visited 45 of about 90 facilities holding migrant children in August and September of 2018 and conducted interviews with operators, medical coordinators, mental health clinicians and other staff. In the resulting report, these officials and practitioners described significant challenges in meeting the mental health needs of children in their care, who had been traumatized long before coming to the United States, then were re-traumatized by policies at the border and further aggravated by being kept in government custody for long periods of time. (Misra, 9/4)
Politico:
Watchdog: Migrant Children Separated From Families Experienced Intense Trauma
Shelter staff said that they were unprepared to address the problems because of a lack of resources and ongoing efforts to reunify children with their parents. The share of children under the age of 12 in ORR custody rose to 24 percent from 14 percent from April to May of last year. The shelter staff also said Trump administration policies requiring sponsors of children to undergo fingerprint background checks delayed unifications and led to overcrowding in shelters. (Rayasam, 9/4)
USA Today:
Separated Migrant Children Suffered PTSD, Trauma, Report Says
The children exhibited signs of fear and anxiety but were apprehensive about sharing that information since they viewed mental health experts as working with "the enemy," the report says. "Program directors and mental health clinicians reported that children who believed their parents had abandoned them were angry and confused," the report says. "Other children expressed feelings of fear and guilt and became concerned for their parents' welfare." (Gomez, 9/4)
CBS News:
HHS Inspector General Report Details Psychological Trauma Among Separated Migrant Children In Border Facilities
A program director at an ORR facility is quoted in the report describing the situation of a 7- or 8-year-old boy who was separated from his father. "The child was under the delusion that his father had been killed and believed that he would also be killed. This child ultimately required emergency psychiatric care to address his mental health distress," the program director is quoted as saying. (Segers and Kates, 9/4)
The Hill:
Government Watchdog Details Severe Trauma Suffered By Separated Children
The report made six recommendations, including telling HHS to assess whether there should be maximum caseloads for individual clinicians, as well as minimize the time that children remain in custody. (Weixel, 9/4)
CNN:
US Government Watchdog Details Trauma Experienced By Separated Migrant Children
In a separate report released Wednesday, the HHS inspector general reviewed whether required employee background checks were completed at ORR-funded facilities, looked at whether case managers and mental health clinicians met the minimum requirements, and assessed staffing challenges. The report found that generally, facilities met background checks and qualification requirements, but in some instances, facilities didn't have evidence of some checks or allowed staff to begin working before receiving the results of the FBI fingerprint check or the Child Protective Services check or both. (Alvarez, 9/4)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Watchdog Finds HHS Shelters Unequipped For Mental Health Of Migrant Children
Migrant children who travel to the U.S. alone face significant trauma during their journeys — but the government-funded shelters tasked with their care are ill-equipped to address their mental health needs, according to a government watchdog report released Wednesday. The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General visited 45 facilities last year that house unaccompanied minors across 10 states, including three in California: BCFS in Fairfield, Southwest Key in Pleasant Hill and an unnamed facility in Yolo County. (Sanchez, 9/4)
The Associated Press:
Many Moms Say Kid's Health Worsened In Immigration Custody
Many mothers who were detained in border stations this summer reported that the health of their children worsened in custody. That's according to a questionnaire of 200 women by a nonprofit legal group that provides services to mothers detained in immigration custody at a family detention center in Dilley, Texas. (Long, 9/4)
In other news —
The Associated Press:
Some Migrant Parents Deported Without Kids Can Return To US
A federal judge ordered the U.S. government Wednesday to allow the return of 11 parents who were deported without their children during the Trump administration's wide-scale separation of immigrant families. U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw ruled that government agents unlawfully prevented those parents from pursuing asylum cases. In some cases, Sabraw found, agents coerced parents to drop their claims and accept deportation by having them sign documents they didn't understand or telling them that asylum laws had changed. (Merchant, 9/4)
The Associated Press:
Shuttered Shelter For Migrant Kids Reopens In Phoenix
A national provider of shelters for immigrant children has reopened one of two Arizona facilities it was forced to shutter last year because of issues with employee background checks. The Arizona Department of Health Services said Wednesday it approved an application by Southwest Key to reopen a Phoenix facility that can house up to 420 children. The shelters are for kids who traveled to the U.S. alone or were separated from a relative. (Galvan, 9/4)
